Primary Day for MA; competition for delegates in the Bay State

Former President Bill Clinton used his popularity in MA on Super Tuesday to meet and greet at Boston area polls and give voters one last push to vote for his wife.

“I think it’s obvious to everybody that the nature and tenor of the Republican presidential contest, both here in MA and throughout the country, is very different than nearly any Republican event that we’ve seen in recent times”, Galvin said during a pre-election briefing with the media. In 2008, Clinton won the Democratic primary against then-Senator Barack Obama 56 to 41 percent. Political analysts have called the Bay State a must-win for Sanders if he wants to get the Democratic presidential nomination.

Voters interested in finding their polling place or previewing ballots online can visit the state’s Elections Divisions website. One New Bedford woman posted a video showing long lines that accrued as voters were forced to wait for Clinton to leave.

Boston is the only city that releases voter turnout on the day of the primary, but, according to Koczela, has a stable enough relationship with statewide turnout to forecast totals across MA. However, those voters who are now on the fence about them may feel persuaded to vote against them after learning of yet another dirty campaign trick.

Baker had endorsed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, but did not select a new favorite after Christie dropped out of the race.

Republican voters were choosing between the five remaining candidates – Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, John Kasich and Ben Carson.

The state’s most hotly contested primary was in 2008, when 1.8 million voters cast their ballots.

Although Trump has held a solid lead in most polls, Kasich is hoping for a strong second place finish.

Thousands of Massachusetts Democrats have denounced their party affiliations since January 1 to jump across the aisle and join the ranks of Independent or Republicans.

Tuesday’s primaries are as much about rounding up delegates as winning individual states. Most switched their registration status to unenrolled, while others became Republicans.

A voter leaves a polling station for Massachusetts’ primary election in the East Boston neighborhood of Boston, Tuesday, March 1, 2016.

“There was some discussion with the Clinton campaign reminding them of that statute”, said Brian McNiff, a spokesman for Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin’s office said.