Primary season is moving along quickly, and it's easy to fall behind on the storylines of the 2016 presidential campaign. Here's a quick update on the candidates, in case you blinked...
Donald Trump
Oh, Donald. You never cease to entertain and confuse the punditry with your campaign. Donald Trump's insurgent campaign has encountered a couple hiccups. With a handful of states flying Ted Cruz's banner in recent weeks over this billionaire candidate's, some have questioned whether or not Trump will be able to seal the deal on the Republican nomination before the convention this summer. Currently, he's sitting on 743 delegates, the most among the remaining Republicans. He'll have to get to 1,237 or face a second vote at the convention, in which his 743 could flip for another candidate, or even for someone who's no longer in the race. There's no sure thing in this election season, but Trump has left open the possibility of an independent run if he doesn't win the Republican nomination. Until then, though, he's got just under 500 delegates to go.
Ted Cruz
Ted Cruz is firmly in second place in the Republican contest. He's got a following of evangelicals and neoconservatives that are unwavering in their support of him. Even better is that he's upset Donald Trump in a handful of states in which some did not expect him to succeed. Still, Cruz's fate is completely dependent upon how well he can pull away delegates from Trump in the primaries that still remain. After that, he's got to win at the convention, which is easier said than done. Cruz is in an odd place, because while he is the candidate with the best chance to stop Trump in terms of delegate math, he does not have all of the weight of the GOP establishment behind him. Cruz's fight is an uphill battle with a coin flip at the end.
John Kasich
John Kasich's campaign is not looking too good. At 143 delegates, the math is not in his favor. The candidate struggled to find a base within the Republican party to stand with, and really had none until Marco Rubio dropped out of the race. It's likely that Rubio dropped out too late for Kasich to snatch up that populace. Instead, Kasich's got to sell himself as the establishment's last hope for a more moderate candidate at the convention, and cross his fingers for a second round of voting. It's also possible that the second round of voting ropes someone not running into the mix, like Paul Ryan or Mitt Romney, so the GOP seems to have nothing but bad news for Kasich. He'll stay in the race until the convention, but don't count on him to be the Republican nominee.
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton's camp is saying she's fine. She could be, but losing eight out of the last nive states isn't very reassuring for Democrats that are looking for a swift nomination process. A number of issues, like Bill Clinton's interactions with Black Lives Matter and the corporate ties that she can't shake, are keeping her from an obvious victory before the Democratic convention. Clinton needs to win convincingly in New York and Pennsylvania to hush the stirring voices in the DNC.
Bernie Sanders
The sting from Super Tuesday last March is healing quickly for Bernie Sanders. Eight wins out of the last nine is promising for those who believe Sanders can catch up to Hillary Clinton's pledged delegate count. What's even better is that three major contests, New York, Pennsylvania, and California, are tightening up. Fast. Clinton's lead in New York shrank by 75 percent in a week. A win in New York and Pennsylvania would boost Sanders' campaign to all-new highs, as the democratic socialist from Vermont has closed in on and even passed Clinton in several national polls. All he needs is a close loss in the high-delegate-count states that are next up to bat. The momentum is with Bernie in a serious way -- Bernie supporters should be ecstatic with their candidate's forecast.
