Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump added to their delegate leads Super Tuesday, winning the majority of their party’s primaries. So, will Illinois’ March 15 presidential primary even matter?
The simple answer is yes. Neither Clinton nor Trump has a decisive enough lead to call either election.
Trump won Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Vermont and Virginia, gaining 237 delegates. He currently has 319 pledged delegates.
Sen. Ted Cruz won his home state of Texas as well as Oklahoma and Alaska, adding 209 delegates. Cruz currently has 226 pledged delegates.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio won Minnesota, his first primary victory. Rubio added 94 delegates on Super Tuesday and currently has 110 pledged delegates.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich didn’t win any primaries but added 19 delegates, bringing his pledged total to 25.
One-time frontrunner Ben Carson also came up short on Super Tuesday. He didn’t win any of the 11 primaries and added only 3 delegates, bringing his pledged total to 8.
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Before the March 15 primaries, 365 more GOP delegates will be decided, with an additional 367 delegates being decided on that day.
Ohio, Missouri, North Carolina, Florida and Illinois will all hold their Republican primaries on March 15.
In the Democratic field, Clinton won Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. In doing so, she won 486 delegates, bring her pledged total to 577.
Sen. Bernie Sanders won his home state of Vermont as well as Colorado, Minnesota and Oklahoma, garnering 321 new delegates and bringing his pledged total to 386.
306 more Democratic delegates will be decided before the March 15 primaries with an additional 691 delegates being decided on that day.
Ohio, Missouri, North Carolina, Florida and Illinois will all hold their Democratic primaries on March 15.
Despite Trump and Clinton’s powerful showings on Super Tuesday, neither has completely run away with their party’s nomination. By the numbers, March 15 still looks to be a decisive day in the presidential election cycle.
