WASHINGTON – Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders competed in a closely divided race in Kentucky’s presidential primary on Tuesday as the Democratic front-runner aimed to blunt Sanders’ momentum ahead of a likely general election matchup against Republican Donald Trump.
Clinton entered Tuesday’s primaries in Kentucky and Oregon with a commanding lead of nearly 300 pledged delegates over Sanders and a dominant advantage among party officials and elected leaders known as superdelegates. Clinton and Sanders were locked in a tight contest in Kentucky as the results were reported Tuesday night. Both campaigns said Sanders had an edge in Oregon.
Clinton remains on track to clinch the nomination in early June, but is trying to avoid ending the primary season with a string of losses to the Vermont senator.
Tuesday’s elections took place amid new questions about party unity following a divisive weekend state party convention in Nevada. Supporters of Sanders tossed chairs and made death threats against the Nevada party chairwoman at the event in Las Vegas, arguing the party leadership rigged the results of the convention in favor of Clinton.
In a sign of the tensions between the two sides, Sanders issued a defiant statement on Tuesday dismissing complaints from Nevada Democrats as “nonsense” and said his supporters were not being treated with “fairness and respect.”