Former US vice-president Joe Biden’s bid to become the Democratic candidate for the US presidential election has received another boost, after he comfortably saw off nearest rival Bernie Sanders in the Florida, Illinois and Arizona primaries.
At the time of writing, CNN reports that with the majority of precincts reporting results in Florida, Biden led Sanders by 62 per cent to roughly 23 per cent.
In Illinois, where most precincts had also reported results, Biden led by 59 per cent to 36 per cent.
With 88 per cent of precincts having reported in Arizona, Biden's lead over Sanders was a comfortable 44 per cent to 32 per cent over his closest rival.
Biden addressed Democrats across the US via webcam from his Delaware residence, following advice to avoid public gatherings in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
Reaching out to supporters of rival candidate Sanders, Biden said: "Let me say, especially to the young voters who have been inspired by Senator Sanders, I hear you, I know what's at stake, I know what we have to do.”
Shifting focus to address the ongoing Covid-19 emergency, Biden sought to create a sense of unity, saying: "The coronavirus doesn't care if you're a Democrat or a Republican... we're all in this together.”
Sanders also addressed supporters online from Washington DC, using the opportunity to outline his plans to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, which he indicated would cost around $2 trillion.
Coronavirus has also had an impact on a number of states and their primary plans, after Ohio called off its poll just hours before they were due to open, with the revised date set for June.
Democratic primaries have been postponed in the states of Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland and Kentucky, while US territory Puerto Rico is also planning to push its Democratic primary back from the end of March.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, incumbent president Donald Trump comfortably secured the 1,276 delegates required to become the Republican Party candidate, seeing off former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld.
As expected, it will now for certain be Trump who will fight to retain the keys to the White House in November’s election.
