Impact2020 Briefing: March 6, 2020
Welcome to your Impact2020 briefing for Friday, March 6. Of note today: Florida could serve as Joe Biden’s springboard to the nomination, the remaining candidates face challenges in winning over Elizabeth Warren’s supporters, and the California primary is getting tighter as the count continues.
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On the Ground
Springboard to the nomination
If South Carolina was Joe Biden’s firewall, Florida may be his springboard. The Miami Herald’s David Smiley and Alex Daugherty report that “things have turned dramatically in Biden’s favor over the last week both nationally and in Florida, the second-largest delegate haul left on the primary calendar.”
Democratic strategists are predicting a dominant win by Biden on March 17. Even Andrew Gillum, who won Florida’s 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary with Bernie Sanders’ help, predicted, Florida “will probably be a Biden runaway.”
Meanwhile, Priorities USA, a leading Democratic super PAC, is postponing a TV ad blitz in the state over concerns that Sanders would have trouble carrying Florida in a general election, McClatchy Senior Political Correspondent Alex Roarty scoops.
Whither Warren?
Elizabeth Warren is out of the race, but unlike other recent departures from Democrats’ nominating contest, it’s not at all clear which of the remaining candidates will win her support. No matter who, or if, Warren decides to endorse, Biden and Sanders “each face unique challenges in winning over her core base: largely white, college-educated women who gravitated toward the potential of a female president and were inspired by her litany of progressive policy proposals,” McClatchy Political Correspondents David Catanese and Roarty write.
Close in California
California may not end up being the resounding victory Sanders had hoped for, which could have implications for the delegate race down the line. At least 3.3 million ballots remain uncounted, according to the first report from counties to the Secretary of State’s office Thursday evening, with more mail-in ballots due on Friday, Bryan Anderson reports for The Sacramento Bee.
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Trail Mix
March Madness
Arizonans waited in line for hours to see Sanders speak in Phoenix, and the Arizona Republic’s Yvonne Wingett Sanchez writes that his “progressive, anti-establishment message — relayed in English and Spanish — has captured the hearts of Latino voters” in the state.
Sanders canceled a Friday visit to Jackson, Miss. to instead campaign in Michigan, Giacomo Bologna reports for the Jackson Clarion Ledger.
With increased absentee voting approved via statewide ballot petition in 2018, Michigan officials are warning that vote tallies will come in later than usual in the March 10 primary, MLive’s Lauren Gibbons reports.
And in Missouri, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jack Suntrup reports Democrats are complaining that Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft “has declined to break down Tuesday’s popular vote by congressional district,” which means the delegate count for each Democratic presidential candidate might not be known for weeks.
The Tampa Bay Times’ Allison Ross reports that Florida officials are encouraging people to vote by mail in ahead of the March 17 primary if they are concerned about being around crowds with the coronavirus outbreak, and is providing sanitizing wipes at every polling station.
Swing state watch
The Houston Chronicle’s Taylor Goldenstein reports that Democrats are suing Texas to prevent the Secretary of State from implementing a law that will end straight-ticket voting after September 2020.
Veepstakes
Orlando-area Rep. Val Demmings is being touted as a potential vice presidential pick for Biden, after endorsing the former vice president on Thursday, Steven Lemongello reports for the Orlando Sentinel.
Battle for Congress
Republicans who want to diversify their ranks in Congress are considering getting involved in more primary battles, McClatchy Congressional Correspondent Emma Dumain reports.
“It’s looking increasingly likely that former Rep. Darrell Issa will compete to return to Congress this fall,” after his lead over fellow Republican Carl DeMaio for the second spot in California’s jungle primary grew Thursday evening, the San Diego Union Tribune’s Charles T. Clark writes.
#FollowFriday
The Kansas City Star’s Washington Correspondent Bryan Lowry and the political team on the ground in KC, led by Jonathan Shorman and Jason Hancock, are all over the build up to Missouri’s Democratic primary next Tuesday. Follow them for updates!
Number of The Day
82,000 +
The number of Georgia voters who have already cast a ballot in early voting, ahead of the state’s March 24 primary, the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Isaac Sabetai and Jennifer Peebles report.
For Planning Purposes
March 6
Sanders holds a rally in Detroit with Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Hon. Mary Sheffield and Dr. Cornel West.
March 7
Sanders holds rallies in Dearborn, Mich. and Chicago, Ill.
Biden holds campaign events in St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo.
March 8
Sanders holds rallies in Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor, Mich.
Biden holds a campaign event with actress Vivica A. Fox in Jackson, Miss.
“It’s Not Going to Be Chill”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez made a plea for Democratic unity on Late Night with Seth Meyers, telling the audience “we really need to make sure that we defeat Donald Trump at the polls—assuming, and knowing, how insane it’s going to get between now and then.”
“Yeah, this doesn’t seem like it’s going to be a laid-back election season,” Meyers chimed in.
This story was originally published March 6, 2020 at 10:48 AM.