BET.com is keeping watch over the Super Tuesday primary elections in the 14 states and one U.S. territory where voters are deciding on Democratic candidates around the country. Five candidates, former vice-president Joe Biden; Sen. Bernie Sanders; Sen. Elizabeth Warren; former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard remain on the ballots. 

There are more than 1,300 delegates up for grabs, and it could determine who will ultimately win the Democratic nomination because the number represents 70 percent of the delegates needed. Follow our live blog coverage today as we continue to post updates.

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Biden walks away with Super Tuesday comeback surge; Sanders captures biggest prize; Bloomberg, Warren collapse

2:12 a.m.

As the 14-state contest went into early Wednesday, it became clear that Joe Biden had found a way to resurrect a campaign in which just a week prior, many were losing faith. Taking nine states on the strength of a huge win in South Carolina last Saturday, the former vice president was bolstered by African American voters in places like Arkansas and Virginia and by moderates looking to find what pundits observe as a sense of political “normalcy.”

Late into the night, Biden had also claimed the victory in Texas, according to the Associated Press, upsetting Bernie Sanders and locking up a successful contest by any measure. He will end with the most delegates, performing surprisingly well in places like Massachusetts and Minnesota, where he did not even campaign.
But the most sought after state was California, the largest state in the union and the most delegate-rich. Bernie Sanders won it handily with Mike Bloomberg a distant second. But it is unclear how many delegates he will get because the state has a complex method of allocating them. This means Biden currently comes out with 453 total delegates in total and Sanders gets 382, the AP says.

Bloomberg only took American Samoa which voted much earlier on Tuesday. But he was resoundingly disappointed with his performance, having spent $463 million of his own money, according to the Federal Election Commission. He has said that he will stay in the race after Super Tuesday, but it does not seem clear what his path to a Democratic nomination would be. His campaign will reportedly “reassess” its direction on Wednesday.
Another candidate that was seriously let down was Elizabeth Warren, who was not even able to win her home state of Massachusetts on Tuesday. Without the support of voters and no endorsements from former candidates, her own path to a nomination also seems unlikely at this point.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), was only scarcely mentioned all of Super Tuesday, and she fell far behind in each contest. The only person of color left in the contest, there is now virtually no way for her to arrive anywhere close to the nomination.

The only remaining state left early Wednesday was Maine and that race was too close to call because Biden and Sanders were running toward a photo finish with only about 1300 votes separating them.
The candidates now look toward the battleground state of Michigan next Tuesday, which was one of the states that determined the outcome of the 2016 election, and Georgia on March 24, which Democrats hope to turn blue in November.

Continue to stay with BET.com through the election cycle for more coverage including exclusive interviews, analysis and other content that will keep you up to date up to the November General Election.

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Bernie Sanders wins California, the biggest Super Tuesday prize; Texas still undecided

12:27 a.m.

The Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times have called California for Bernie Sanders, the most coveted state in the Super Tuesday contest. Candidates had sought after its 415 delegates to help carry them to the Democratic nomination. Sanders has been very strong with Latino voters, as well as younger and more left-leaning voters. Although it only gives him four states, it gives him the biggest win.

However, the Democratic race has essentially transformed into a two-person race between Sanders and Joe Biden. Elizabeth Warren did not count any wins through the night and did not do better than third place in any of the contested states. Mike Bloomberg was also disappointed, having spent millions of dollars across the country hoping to reach voters. His campaign has reportedly said he will “reassess” its direction, according to The Hill.

Still up in the air, however is Texas which seems to have Biden leading in the count so far despite Sanders being thought to have an advantage there. If he wins then that would stop Sanders from claiming any complete delegate victory and sends both men into the rest of primary season in a likely dogfight for the remaining delegates needed to win the Democratic nomination.

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Massachusetts goes to Biden in upset

11:14 p.m.

Despite it being her home state, the Associated Press reports Elizabeth Warren failed to carry Massachusetts, losing it to Joe Biden, who is riding a wave across the Super Tuesday contests with eight of the 14 being contested so far. Biden did not campaign here as he was not expected to win against Warren, who comes in third behind Bernie Sanders.

The state is worth 91 delegates and places Biden in square competition against Sanders as both await the results in Texas and California, whire polls just closed.

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Two state split with Arkansas and Utah

10:55 p.m.

Joe Biden has taken another win tonight, this time in Arkansas, the Associated Press reports, which gives him a majority of the southern states in the Super Tuesday contest. He has done much better than anticipated down to just a week ago, before he won the South Carolina primary.
Arkansas is one of the states that Mike Bloomberg had spent a significant amount of money trying to reach voters, who were ultimately unconvinced.

But Bernie Sanders, still hoping more western states deliver has claimed a victory in Utah, but it brings his totals so far tonight to just three states, along with Vermont and Colorado. He is currently leading in Texas as vote counts there are incomplete. California, the night’s grand prize, will close its polls at 11 p.m. EST.

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Biden Clinches Tennessee, Minnesota extending ride of wins into the night

9:55 p.m.
Despite deadly and devastating tornadoes hitting the Nashville area, voters managed to make it to the polls and have apparently given the state’s primary to Joe Biden, according to news network calling. The Tennessean reports he was able to hold back both Bernie Sanders and Michael Bloomberg, giving the former vice president a commanding lead among states, particularly in the south.
Meanwhile, the Associated Press is projecting Biden has also won Minnesota, which is where Sen. Amy Klobuchar comes from. After she exited the presidential campaign, she endorsed Biden. These wins, along with the others, numerically could force Sanders into a position where he is dependent on wins in California and Texas, whose votes have not finished counting.

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Biden, Sanders push west, continue to dust it up with Oklahoma, Colorado wins

9:20 p.m.

The Associated Press reports Bernie Sanders racked up a win in Colorado, a key state in the west, which could be a preview of how he will do in places like Utah, Texas and California, although those races are not near being called yet.

But Joe Biden countered with a victory in Oklahoma, the AP says, giving himself 37 more pledged delegates. The win could bode how well he’ll do in adjacent Arkansas, which is still being counted and where Biden again is likely to do well among African American voters.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren has not claimed a victory at all so far tonight and in several states has not claimed the 15 percent of the vote needed to gain delegates.

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Biden wins North Carolina, Alabama grabbing Southern state quad 

8:03 p.m.

The former vice president was projected with an early win in North Carolina, racking up a three-state victory with Virginia and South Carolina, which gives him the momentum needed to face the remaining 11 states including Tennessee, Alabama, and the coveted Texas and California. With Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar dropping out over the past few days and endorsing Biden, voters were influenced to make a decision to turn toward him.

“The country needs somebody that’s a little bit more moderate,” said Benjamin Hudson, a 21-year-old student told the Raleigh News-Observer. “You have an extreme right guy — Trump — that’s in office right now, and if you go to the extreme left wing you’re not going to get anything done.”
Farther west, Biden also claimed a victory in Alabama, according to the Associated Press. With North and South Carolina and Virginia, Biden takes a four state victory helped largely by African American voters and it gives him an even more confident path as he faces states where he'll likely have tougher challenges by Bernie Sanders.

Meanwhile in his first win of Super Tuesday, former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg won the caucuses in U.S. territory of American Samoa, according to The Hill. Voters in the South Pacific island chain will not cast ballots in the November election, but they can decide to give delegates in presidential primaries.

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Biden wins Virginia; Sanders wins Vermont. 2 down, 12 to go

7:31 p.m.

Joe Biden easily took Virginia, the Associated Press reports. The win came with strong African American support in one of the first Super Tuesday Democratic primary results. Many of the state’s top Black political figures have endorsed him including Rep. Bobby Scott and Rep. Donald McEachin and his name recognition and association with the Obama administration, as observed before, is clearly resonating with Black voters. With its 99 delegates, it’s another huge win after taking the South Carolina primary on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders took the prize in his home state of Vermont, as was expected, according to the Burlington Free Press. He voted there today, telling a poll worker, "It's very nice to be back.” He now looks to take wins in the prized states of Texas and California where he hopes Latino voters will give him the boost he needs to keep Biden off his heels.

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Sanders leads in delegates, but Black votes giving Biden momentum

5:10 p.m.

A primary win projection model created by FiveThirtyEight.com puts Joe Biden in a position to win a “plurality of pledged delegates,” despite Bernie Sanders’ hold of 60 delegates captured in the early primary states Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina. But in that last state, it was Biden who took a huge victory and is looking at more possible gains as polls close around the country.

But African American voters may be the key to any momentum Biden has. According to Politico, Biden may be able to take advantage of Black-majority districts where he has large support. “We’re giving him rocket fuel,” said Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.), who endorsed Biden, told the website. Her district is 63 percent Black and voting on Tuesday, and will give the winner eight delegates. If Biden does win it will be a virtual continuation of his 50 percent victory in South Carolina, according to Matt Seyfang, who had worked for Pete Buttigieg’s campaign until he bowed out on Sunday.

“It was a resounding a**-kicking,” he said. “Black voters came through in a big way. My hunch is that South Carolina gave permission for black voters everywhere, and some white voters, to vote for Biden.”

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Bernie Sanders enters California with huge lead in polls

4:16 p.m.

A poll released Sunday shows Democratic frontrunner Sen. Bernie Sanders with a double-digit, 37.8 percent lead among California voters, which means he’s likely to remain competitive in the race with former vice president Joe Biden, despite his significant win in the South Carolina primary last weekend.

The Nexstar Media California TV Stations/Emerson College poll surveyed voters before Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar dropped out of the race over the past two days. About 21 percent said they support Biden, while 16.1 percent are behind Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg got 10.8 percent backing, according to KTLA. 

California is the most delegate-rich of all the Super Tuesday states with 415 delegates waiting to be taken

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Biden picks up pre-Super Tuesday endorsements

3:39 p.m.

Former presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke gave his endorsement to Joe Biden as he campaigned in Dallas, Monday evening. 

"The man in the White House today poses an existential threat to this country, to our democracy, to free and fair elections, and we need somebody who can beat him, and in Joe Biden we have that man," said O’Rourke, who ended his own campaign for president in November.

Both Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who dropped out of the race on Monday and former South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg, who stopped his campaign on Sunday, have also given their endorsements to Biden. Billionaire Tom Steyer, who stopped his presidential bid on Saturday has not endorsed a candidate.

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The States at Stake

3 p.m.

Alabama, American Samoa, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Vermont are voting today. The biggest wins would be in California, which has 415 delegates and Texas with 228, unlike in Republican primaries, the Democrats do not have a winner-take-all provision for those two states.

So far in delegate counts, Sen. Bernie Sanders is leading with 60, and former vice president Joe Biden trails him at 54 after a decisive win in South Carolina last weekend. But that could change significantly after Tuesday when these states cast their ballots.
Polls are currently open in each of the states with Vermont and Virginia’s closing earliest at 7 p.m. EST, and California closing at 11 p.m. EST.