The Making of the President 2016: Part 14-The New York Primary
The New York primaries set the stage for some real drama. Both of the front-runners had home field advantage in the state, Donald Trump being a prominent New York resident and businessman for many years and Hillary Clinton having represented the state in the senate from 2001 to 2009. But prior to the primary, opponents of the two leading candidates seemed to be gaining momentum. Victory in the primary did not seem in doubt for Trump, but the question was how many delegates his opponents Ted Cruz and John Kasich would win. For the Democrats, native-born Brooklynite Bernie Sanders also had been riding a wave of momentum, and he hoped to be the victor in a David and Goliath scenario in the state.
The Democrats
After some initial wrangling over whether the debate would take place, the Democratic Party held its ninth presidential debate on April 14, 2016 at the Duggal Greenhouse in Brooklyn Navy Yard. The debate was aired on CNN and NY1. Wolf Blitzer of CNN served as moderator. Clinton operated on a packed schedule that included riding the subway, drinking bubble tea and sampling dumplings in Brooklyn.
Polling leading up to the vote generally showed Clinton with a lead of between 52 and 57% and Sanders with between 40 to 47%. Clinton finished the night with 57.9% of the vote, which means that she will receive 139 of the state's pledged delegates. and another 39 unpledged delegates for a total of 178. Sanders receieved 42.1% of the vote to win 108 pledged delegates.
In a speech at her victory rally, Clinton proclaimed: “There’s no place like home.” She told the crowd that the race for the nomination is now entering the “home stretch” and “victory is in sight.” In her speech she appealed to Sanders supporters, telling them: “There is much more that unites us than divides us.” Clinton's campaign need the victory after recent setbacks. Sanders had been on a winning streak up until Tuesday – winning seven of the eight prior contests.
The Republicans
For the GOP, recent polls showed Trump leading with between 50 and 57% of the vote. Despite efforts to cut into Trump's numbers, Ted Cruz generally polled third at between 14 to 20%, with John Kasich finishing second with between 21 and 27%.
Trump spent the morning of the primary visiting his polling station, the Central Synagogue three blocks east of Trump Tower, where he cast a ballot for himself for the first time. There he told reporters "It's a proud moment. It's a great moment. And who would've thought? It's just an honor."
Trump surpassed his polling numbers, receiving 60.5% of the vote, with Kasich in second with 25.05 and Cruz in third with 14.45%. Trump won at least 90 of the state's 95 pledged delegates, Kasich won the remaining 5 and Cruz was shut out of receiving any delegates.
Speaking to cheering supporters at his victory party at Trump Tower, Trump told the crowd: “We don’t have much of a race anymore. Senator Cruz is just about mathematically eliminated. We’re really, really rockin’.”
The campaigns head next to five Eastern states that vote next Tuesday: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware. Trump needs 1,237 delegates to clinch the nomination. Thus far, the rough numbers, according to RealClearPolitics.com are Trump-845 delegates, Cruz-559, and Kasich-171.
Cruz remained optimistic after the defeat. Earlier in the campaign, Cruz criticized what he referred to as Trump's "New York values", generating a backlash against him in the Empire state. After his defeat, he was looking ahead to Pennsylvania and other states. He called on Americans to join together to move the country forward. "It is time for us to get up, shake it off and be who we were destined to be,” he said.
For Cruz and Kasich, the plan is to prevent Trump from winning a majority of delegates in the primaries, hoping for a convention floor fight. Cruz has been hoping for a contested convention – where no candidate has the necessary 1,237 delegates – by getting allies elected as delegates. That way, if voting goes to a second round, some of those pledged to Trump on the first round could then switch their support to Cruz.
The Democrats
After some initial wrangling over whether the debate would take place, the Democratic Party held its ninth presidential debate on April 14, 2016 at the Duggal Greenhouse in Brooklyn Navy Yard. The debate was aired on CNN and NY1. Wolf Blitzer of CNN served as moderator. Clinton operated on a packed schedule that included riding the subway, drinking bubble tea and sampling dumplings in Brooklyn.
Polling leading up to the vote generally showed Clinton with a lead of between 52 and 57% and Sanders with between 40 to 47%. Clinton finished the night with 57.9% of the vote, which means that she will receive 139 of the state's pledged delegates. and another 39 unpledged delegates for a total of 178. Sanders receieved 42.1% of the vote to win 108 pledged delegates.
In a speech at her victory rally, Clinton proclaimed: “There’s no place like home.” She told the crowd that the race for the nomination is now entering the “home stretch” and “victory is in sight.” In her speech she appealed to Sanders supporters, telling them: “There is much more that unites us than divides us.” Clinton's campaign need the victory after recent setbacks. Sanders had been on a winning streak up until Tuesday – winning seven of the eight prior contests.
The Republicans
For the GOP, recent polls showed Trump leading with between 50 and 57% of the vote. Despite efforts to cut into Trump's numbers, Ted Cruz generally polled third at between 14 to 20%, with John Kasich finishing second with between 21 and 27%.
Trump spent the morning of the primary visiting his polling station, the Central Synagogue three blocks east of Trump Tower, where he cast a ballot for himself for the first time. There he told reporters "It's a proud moment. It's a great moment. And who would've thought? It's just an honor."
Trump surpassed his polling numbers, receiving 60.5% of the vote, with Kasich in second with 25.05 and Cruz in third with 14.45%. Trump won at least 90 of the state's 95 pledged delegates, Kasich won the remaining 5 and Cruz was shut out of receiving any delegates.
Speaking to cheering supporters at his victory party at Trump Tower, Trump told the crowd: “We don’t have much of a race anymore. Senator Cruz is just about mathematically eliminated. We’re really, really rockin’.”
The campaigns head next to five Eastern states that vote next Tuesday: Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware. Trump needs 1,237 delegates to clinch the nomination. Thus far, the rough numbers, according to RealClearPolitics.com are Trump-845 delegates, Cruz-559, and Kasich-171.
Cruz remained optimistic after the defeat. Earlier in the campaign, Cruz criticized what he referred to as Trump's "New York values", generating a backlash against him in the Empire state. After his defeat, he was looking ahead to Pennsylvania and other states. He called on Americans to join together to move the country forward. "It is time for us to get up, shake it off and be who we were destined to be,” he said.
For Cruz and Kasich, the plan is to prevent Trump from winning a majority of delegates in the primaries, hoping for a convention floor fight. Cruz has been hoping for a contested convention – where no candidate has the necessary 1,237 delegates – by getting allies elected as delegates. That way, if voting goes to a second round, some of those pledged to Trump on the first round could then switch their support to Cruz.