Clinton builds on lead

Published 10:11 am Wednesday, March 23, 2016

WASHINGTON —Hillary Clinton is closing in on collecting three-quarters of the delegates needed to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination.

Bernie Sanders netted more than a dozen delegates after splitting the latest contests with Clinton. But he still trails significantly.

Three states held Democratic contests with a total of 131 delegates at stake.

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Sanders picked up at least 67, having won big in Idaho and Utah.

Clinton will gain at least 51 after a victory in Arizona.

Thirteen delegates remain to be allocated from Tuesday, pending final vote tallies.

Still, Clinton continues to sustain a big lead overall.

Based on primaries and caucuses to date, she leads Sanders 1,214 to 911.

Clinton’s lead is even bigger when including superdelegates, or party officials who can back any candidate they wish.

She now has 1,681, or 71 percent of the number needed to clinch the nomination. Sanders has 937.

Trump takes Arizona

Donald Trump took the top prize in the latest Republican presidential races: all 58 delegates in Arizona’s primary.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz won big in Utah, and he’ll get all 40 of the state’s delegates to the Republican National Convention. But he has a very limited path to clinch the nomination before the party’s convention this summer.