Politics & Government
4-Day Bernie Sanders Festival In Worcester Before Super Tuesday
"Berniepalooza" begins Friday as he competes with U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren in her home state.
WORCESTER, MA — Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign will host a four-day "festival of music and canvassing" in Worcester this week as he competes with Massachusetts U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren for a win here on Super Tuesday.
The Sanders campaign has identified Worcester County as a "strategically vital" area to win. Sanders lost to Hillary Clinton in Massachusetts on Super Tuesday in 2016, but he did win in Worcester, Hampshire, Franklin, and Berkshire counties.
Volunteers for all the major presidential campaigns have been canvassing in Massachusetts recently ahead of the March 3 primary. But there's a special significance for the battle between Warren and Sanders.
After a win in Nevada on Saturday, Sanders is ahead of Warren in the delegate count, 39 to 8. A Sanders win on Super Tuesday in Warren's home state would not only add to his delegate count, it might be a referendum on her popularity. Vermont also votes on Super Tuesday.
Over the weekend, social media was full of images of people canvassing for Warren, including local politicians like Worcester U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, and Framingham Mayor Yvonne Spicer.
But a recent poll from YouGov and UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion showed Sanders with a one-point lead over Warren in Massachusetts. That same poll found that 32 percent of Massachusetts voters think Sanders will be the eventual Democratic nominee, just 5 percent think it will be Warren. However, the poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 6.1 points, and was taken before Warren's Feb. 19 debate performance in Nevada.
The "Berniepalooza" event begins Friday morning at 8 a.m. at the campaign's office at 70 James St. in Worcester. There are also a number of volunteer events for Warren in the Worcester and Boston areas all this week.
REMINDER: Early primary voting in Massachusetts started on Feb. 24. See polling locations and times for Worcester, Marlborough, Milford, Framingham, Natick, Sudbury, and Wayland.
