Michigan primary

The message from Michigan

Both Joe Biden and Donald Trump won overwhelming victories in Tuesday’s Michigan primary, but their undeniable success doesn’t answer the hard questions facing each candidate in the general election. They won’t get the answers next week on Super Tuesday, either, even though both candidates are expected to win easily. What are those questions, on which victory in November depends? Oddly, some are the same for Biden and Trump. Can they recapture the reluctant wings of their party, the factions that have refused to vote for them so far? Can they move beyond consolidating support within their parties to win over independent voters, who outnumber both Republicans and Democrats? Despite that similarity, there is a fundamental difference between the refusenik wings of each party.

michigan

Michigan’s primary could be Bernie Sanders’ last stand

From our UK edition

Ever since Super Tuesday, when Joe Biden pulled off upset wins in Texas, Massachusetts, and Minnesota on his way to ten state-wide wins, the tables have turned. It is now Bernie Sanders, the frontrunner only a few weeks ago, who needs a victory to breath new life into his campaign. The best, and likely only, shot for gaining back momentum in the race: grabbing Michigan. Sanders has some experience shocking the political world with upset political wins. During his first presidential campaign against Democratic establishment favourite Hillary Clinton, the white-haired populist with the Brooklyn accent swept Michigan’s rural counties and did well enough in the suburbs to claim the state by just 1.5 per centage points.