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Clinton wins Missouri Democratic primary as Sanders concedes

Posted at 7:13 PM, Mar 17, 2016
and last updated 2016-03-17 19:13:38-04

Hillary Clinton has narrowly won the Missouri Democratic primary, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders says he won’t request a recount.

Clinton led Sanders by 1,531 votes, though some absentee votes still need to be counted. The announcement means Clinton swept all five states that voted in Tuesday night’s primaries.

Sanders spokesman Michael Briggs told CNN that the Vermont senator won’t request a recount because he wants to “save the taxpayers of Missouri some money.”

Sanders’ decision was first reported by The Associated Press.

Briggs noted that Sanders split the delegates almost evenly with Clinton in Missouri and Illinois, though the former secretary of state won handily in Florida, North Carolina and Ohio.

“His focus now is on the second half of the delegate selection process. He’s looking forward to Arizona, Idaho and Utah next Tuesday and moving on to other important states including Wisconsin, New York and California,” Briggs said in an email.

He added of Sanders: “He’s taking the contest all the way to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.”