International News

WASHINGTON, (APP/AFP) – US states Alaska,
Hawaii and Washington take their turn voting Saturday in the Democratic presidential nominating contest, with Hillary Clinton unlikely to deliver a knockout blow against resilient rival Bernie Sanders.
The trio of western caucuses marks a chance for Vermont Senator
Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, to chisel away at Clinton’s formidable lead in the delegate count.
Sanders gave a rousing rendition of his standard stump speech late
Friday in Seattle, Washington, just hours ahead of the caucus there, inveighing against police brutality, a too-low minimum wage, and soaring student debt and other ills.
Saturday’s three contests are caucuses, essentially neighborhood
meetings where voters can discuss political platforms and debate the merits of the candidates.
Since they generally require voters to show up in person rather than
mailing primary ballots, the format favors Sanders, whose supporters have
consistently shown more grass-roots enthusiasm.
His campaign pointed to a new poll released Thursday that shows
Clinton, who entered the race as the Democrats’ overwhelming favorite, deadlocked with Sanders.