A Winthrop University poll released on November 4th, found Hillary Clinton crushing Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders by 56 percentage points in the Palmetto State. The survey of “likely Democratic primary voters” had Clinton leading Sanders 71 percent to 15 percent, with former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley polling just 2 percent.
Clinton’s advantage was especially strong with African-American voters. Eighty percent of black Democratic primary voters plan to vote for Hillary Clinton. African-Americans typically make up over half of the state’s Democratic primary voters. They are often a critical constituency in deciding the outcome of the nation’s first racially diverse primary. South Carolina casts its votes after two small overwhelmingly white states–Iowa and New Hampshire.
The former Secretary of State, New York Senator, and First Lady is immensely popular with Democratic voters in South Carolina. 79 percent of likely Democratic primary voters have a favorable opinion of Clinton, compared to just 10 percent who view her unfavorably.
South Carolina was a crucial win for Barack Obama during his successful 2008 bid for the Democratic nomination. After winning Iowa, and losing a close race in New Hampshire, Obama scored a decisive victory in South Carolina, defeating Hillary Clinton 55.4 to 26.5 percent.
Hillary Clinton appears destined to reverse her fortunes in South Carolina, going from a lopsided defeat in 2008 to a potential one-sided victory in 2016. With the primary over three months away, the dynamics could still change dramatically, but for now Clinton has to be heavily favored to win the state, and possibly by a huge margin.
Buoyed by the GOP’s overreach in the televised Benghazi hearings, Hillary Clinton has also staked out a dominant lead in recent national surveys, doubling up Sanders 62 to 31 percent in a recent NBC/Wall Stree Journal poll. Early races in Iowa and New Hampshire remain competitive, but South Carolina presents an opportunity for Clinton to score a resounding victory in February, as the contest heads into the delegate-rich states that cast ballots in March.