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Joe Biden Just Won Texas

Prior to Super Tuesday, Biden's most optimistic supporters were hoping he'd just keep it close in Texas.
Supporters of presidential candidate Joe Biden walk out after he spoke at a rally on March 2, 2020 at Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas.

Former Vice President Joe Biden has pulled out a slim victory in Texas, networks projected early Wednesday morning, completing a sweep of the Deep South that puts him in the driver’s seat for the Democratic presidential nomination.

With over 90% of precincts reporting, Biden was holding a roughly 70,000-vote lead over Sen. Bernie Sanders, good for roughly a third of the overall vote total. Sanders was hovering at around 30%, while former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was hovering at around 15%.

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Sen. Elizabeth Warren, with just 11% of the vote, appeared to be below the threshold to pickup statewide delegates, although she could still pick up a few delegates from Texas if she cracks 15% in some state Senate districts.

Much of Biden’s margin in Texas, like elsewhere in the South, appears to have come from his strong showing with older and black voters, according to CNN’s exit poll. Biden won nearly 60% of black voters and over 40% of voters over the age of 45. Sanders, meanwhile, performed strongly with Latino and Asian voters in the same exit poll and won roughly half of voters under 45.

Polling done before the election showed Biden and Sanders in a tight race, though Biden undoubtedly picked up a late burst of steam with a big win in South Carolina and a wave of endorsements, including former presidential and Texas Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke. Biden won the election day vote, and as that continues to trickle in, his margins could continue to grow.

Although Biden won, he may not pick up much from the state once all of the delegates are counted; with over half of the state’s delegates yet to be counted, he holds 56-50 lead over Sanders so far in delegates awarded, according to NPR.

Cover: Supporters of presidential candidate Joe Biden walk out after he spoke at a rally on March 2, 2020 at Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas. (Photo by MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images)