Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is projected to defeat Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) handily in Georgia’s primary Tuesday, a state where the Democratic Party’s African-American voters were expected to play a big role. The race was called by the networks at 7 p.m. EST.
Her victory there comes days after Clinton won in neighboring South Carolina and kicked off a night where Clinton is expected to do well in a number of Southern states.
Clinton led Sanders in Georgia going into Super Tuesday 61 percent to 33 percent, according to TPM’s PollTracker.
Clinton had the endorsements of civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) as well as Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. The Sanders campaign, meanwhile, had the support of rapper Killer Mike, an Atlanta native.
Clinton’s victory in Georgia comes as Sanders has been struggling to expand his base beyond the white liberal voters that propelled him to a landslide win in New Hampshire and a strong showing in Iowa. While Sanders is expected to be competitive in some of the other states holding primaries Tuesday, Clinton will be counting on the support of black voters in states in the South to help her maximize her delegate count.
