HONOLULU—Sen. Bernie Sanders has won the Hawaii Democratic presidential caucus, capping a day of strong wins in the West including Washington and Alaska.
The Vermont senator easily defeated former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton during Saturday’s nominating process, even though many leaders in the Democratic Party establishment backed Clinton.
While results in Washington, Alaska and Hawaii barely dented Clinton’s significant delegate lead, Sanders’ wins underscored her persistent vulnerabilities within her own party, particularly with young voters and liberal activists who have been inspired by her rival’s unapologetically liberal message.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Sanders cast his performance as part of a Western comeback, saying he expects to close the delegate gap with Clinton as the contest moves to the more liberal northeastern states, including her home state of New York. He also said his campaign is increasing its outreach to superdelegates, the party insiders who can pick either candidate, and are overwhelmingly with Clinton.
“The Deep South is a very conservative part of the country,” he said. “Now that we’re heading into a progressive part of the country, we expect to do much better.”
He added: “There is a path to victory.” With Clinton far in front, however, it is a difficult path.
Long Lines
Hawaii Democrats waited through long lines to cast votes for who should be the party’s presidential candidate in an election that organizers say drew thousands of new members to the polls.
