Coconino County was only county in Arizona where Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders won in Tuesday’s presidential preference election. The Vermont Senator campaigned in Flagstaff during the week leading up to the vote. Arizona Public Radio’s Ryan Heinsius reports.
Sanders held rallies at Twin Arrows Casino and the amphitheater at Ft. Tuthill prior to Election Day. He also campaigned in downtown Flagstaff. Early numbers in Coconino County show him leading his Democratic rival, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, by more than 1,200 votes.
County Recorder Patty Hansen says Sanders’ local presence served him well.
“I definitely believe that Senator Sanders being here got a lot of people excited. It’s very unusual for our little town of Flagstaff to get that kind of attention from a presidential candidate, and so I think that had people wanting to participate,” she says.
Hillary Clinton won four counties in northern Arizona and a majority of the statewide vote. She’ll gain at least 44 delegates for the Democratic Convention this summer while Sanders won at least 30 delegates.
Republican frontrunner Donald Trump won 47 percent of the statewide vote and gained all 58 delegates for his party. Senator Ted Cruz earned 25 percent of the Republican vote.
