On ‘Big Tuesday,’ Michigan Is The Biggest Prize

After Bernie Sanders’ disappointing finish in the Super Tuesday contests, his campaign may hinge on one state voting today: Michigan.

Sanders himself has called Michigan the “most important state” on this “Big Tuesday.”

It’s a state where Sanders has a lot of history. It was the site of his biggest upset victory in 2016 over Hillary Clinton, and Sanders returned there ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration to rally in support of the Affordable Care Act.

Heading into the primary, Sanders has been ramping up his attacks on Joe Biden’s voting record in the Senate, particularly his support of trade deals such as NAFTA and the Iraq War.

But that message doesn’t seem to be hitting home for voters. The former vice president, not Sanders, has the lead in polls.

Patricia Scott says she wants to see stability and someone who’s able to unify the country in the Democratic nominee. She says Sanders’ attacks on Biden don’t represent that unity.

“I don’t think people will [see] Bernie … as someone who can really unify the whole country,” she says. “I think people are looking for a more civil approach to doing things, a more civilized proposal for talking to people and a more civilized approach with a candidacy. And I think Joe Biden is that [person].”

For Julián Guerra, the concern over Sanders is more a question of whether the Vermont senator is too far left for most of the country.

Guerra lives in Rochester, Mich., and says he’s happy to see Biden emerging as the front-runner.

“I’m an idealist guy,” Guerra says. “So I guess Bernie would be my guy. But, you know, people aren’t going to vote for him. What he wants to do – everything is great and we need it, right? But people are not going to stretch themselves that far out.”

A loss in Michigan would be a big blow for Sanders, both for its 125 delegates and for its political symbolism.

But some supporters here are still hopeful.

Ariel Friedlander, in her senior year at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, says she still believes Sanders is the only candidate who can beat Trump in November.

“I don’t think [Biden] has the momentum to really build a campaign that will turn people out to vote for him,” she says. “[Young voters] need someone they can actually really get behind and get excited about. And that’s definitely not Biden.”

Friedlander says she thinks people are uncomfortable with the “big ideas” of Sanders’ campaign. “But the hard truth is that that’s why people vote for Trump,” she says and sighs. “They wanted big change and they followed the wrong leader and he didn’t give them the change they wanted. Bernie Sanders is the change people want to see.”

— Barbara Sprunt, Scott Detrow