The 20th of February saw the Nevada Democratic caucus, in which Hillary Rodham Clinton scored an important, strategic victory against Bernie Sanders. The stakes of the Nevada caucus were not only related to the winning of delegates, though.
Winning Nevada will be an important indication of the winner’s appeal to racial minorities. A step forward in itself, the victory obtained in the Palmetto State by Hillary Clinton could also be an indication of what is to come in South Carolina on the 27th of February, as it is a state with a large percentage of minorities among the voting population.
Bernie Sanders started as a favorite
The fight for Nevada’s delegates has been almost evenly-matched, with the Clinton campaign taking into consideration a potential Sanders win, based on recent polls. In the end, the former First Lady seems to have struck a deeper chord with Nevada voters.
This is most likely due to the fact that she has tackled a wider range of issues, whereas Bernie Sanders has focused mostly on income inequality and breaking up the big banks of Wall Street. One critical issue with the minorities of Nevada has definitely been immigration reform.
This has been a key focus point for both candidates, but it seems that Hillary has managed to play this card much better. In her campaign ad for the Nevada caucus, she is focusing on a conversation with a young girl whose parents are at risk of being deported.
The Bern’s past was a big minus
On the opposing end, despite having come up with a revised and progressive immigration platform, Bernie Sanders was criticized for a vote he cast back in 2007 against a bipartisan immigration reform bill. Apparently, the Vermont Senator’s point of view change with regard to immigration may have come too late.
Hillary Clinton’s win in the Nevada caucus may also be attributed to her taking the campaign initiative much earlier than her opponent, opening field offices several months in advance of Sanders. In this year’s campaign, she also benefited from the experience gained during the 2008 presidential caucus, when she fought against Barack Obama. The then-Illinois Senator managed to win more delegates due to a more strategic positioning of campaign offices and distribution of supporters.
This has been a lesson which Clinton’s campaign staff has learned and implemented with a great deal of success in this year’s caucus. It would appear that this has actually compensated for the smaller number of field offices, paid staff and television ads, when comparing to Bernie Sander’s allocated resources.
Another success in South Carolina could be crucial for Hillary
With the Nevada Democratic caucus won and a very good chance of winning the South Carolina primary as well, it would seem that Hillary Clinton has managed to rob Bernie Sanders of the momentum he may have gained after winning in New Hampshire.
According to Huffington Post, Hillary Clinton also has built an impressive lead among the superdelegates. It will be interesting to see, therefore, if with these advantages Hillary Clinton will manage to win more states in the upcoming Super Tuesday on the 1st of March. Judging from the way things stand at this moment, it appears that the race for the Democratic nomination will be an extremely tight one.
