Hillary Clinton wants to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination. Just not in Long Beach.
Clinton has spent the last three decades waiting for the moment when she could claim the mantle as the the first woman to become the presumptive presidential nominee of a major political party. So when CNN, the Associated Press and others called her race against Bernie Sanders on Monday night, one would think she would celebrate.
Clinton, worried that calling the race on Monday night would make her supporters less likely to vote in the California and New Jersey primaries Tuesday, walked a fine line at her rally here.
“I got to to tell you, according to the news we are on the brink of a historic, historic, unprecedented moment, but we still have work to do, don’t we?” Clinton said. “We have six elections tomorrow and we are going to fight hard for every single vote, especially right here in California.”
Clinton added, “So I am asking each and every one of you, how many of you have already voted by mail? How many of you have a ballot at home on your kitchen counter? You could send it in tonight or even better, go to the polls tomorrow and take your family and your friends.”
Clinton’s strategy did not change after the event. CNN tried to ask Clinton about the race being called seven times on the rope line. Not once did the former secretary of state respond.
Clinton’s campaign was not happy the race was called on Monday and had hoped most news networks would wait until Tuesday — when voters go to the polls — to make the official call. That was part strategy — they don’t want the vote to be suppressed — and part planning in that Clinton has an event in Brooklyn on Tuesday night where her campaign had hoped she would be able to react for the first time to the race being called.
Instead, Clinton reacted at Long Beach Community College.
But aides say, however, that Clinton will deliver a speech that directly addresses the historic nature of her candidacy on Tuesday and begin to offer olive branches to Sanders’ supporters.
“We look forward to Tuesday night, when Hillary Clinton will clinch not only a win in the popular vote, but also the majority of pledged delegates,” Robby Mook, Clinton’s campaign manger said in a statement.