One day after his latest batch of electoral failures, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders acknowledged Wednesday he is losing the electability argument in his campaign for the White House but is continuing his quest for the Democratic nomination.
Sanders held a press conference in Burlington, Vermont, saying he was committed to doing whatever is necessary to defeat President Donald Trump this November. He said he was looking forward to Sunday’s one-on-one Arizona debate against former Vice President Joe Biden.
Sanders did not take questions from reporters.
Sanders acknowledged “we are losing the debate over electability” to a candidate many Democrats think will have a better chance of defeating Trump in the fall. But he said he wants to force Biden to confront issues of economic inequality and other issues important to Sanders’ supporters.
Only weeks ago, Sanders was the presumptive front-runner of a once-crowded Democratic presidential primary. However, Biden continued his South Carolina and Super Tuesday momentum with four wins on Super Tuesday 2.0, including the biggest prize up for grabs last night, Michigan.
Biden also won Missouri, Mississippi and Idaho.
Biden seized a key battleground state that helped propel Sanders’ insurgent candidacy four years ago. The former vice president's victory in Michigan, as well as Missouri and Mississippi, dealt a serious blow to Sanders, who was urgently seeking to jump-start his flagging campaign.
Six states held primaries Tuesday, but Michigan and its 125 delegates were March 10’s biggest prize. Other states voting Tuesday were Washington (89 delegates); Missouri (68); Mississippi (36); Idaho (20); and North Dakota (14).
On March 17, 577 delegates are at stake in Florida (219); Illinois (155); Ohio (136); and Arizona (67).
»March 10, 2020, presidential primary results
Riding a wave of African American support in the South, Biden won 10 of Super Tuesday’s 14 states. While Sanders won the night’s biggest prize — California and its 415 delegates — Biden was widely seen as Super Tuesday’s biggest winner, resurrecting a campaign that had been declared all but dead only a week before.
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Sanders, who added credibility to his insurgent 2016 primary challenge of Clinton with a win in Michigan, predicted he would emerge victorious there on Tuesday.
»Delegate tracker for election 2020
Although he has rejected notions he could drop out of the race if Tuesday goes badly, Sanders was visiting polling stations in Detroit on Tuesday, scrounging for late-breaking supporters.
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He’s said he’s now battling the “Democratic establishment” and scoffed at suggestions that so much of the party’s elite supporting his opponent means Biden is more electable.
»MORE: Coronavirus fears cause DNC, CNN to prohibit audience, press room at next debate
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