Bernie Sanders Wins the New Hampshire Primary, Elizabeth Warren and Joe Biden Collapse

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I–Vt.) claimed a narrow victory in the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary Tuesday night, cementing the 78-year-old democratic socialist's status as the de facto frontrunner for the party's nomination. It's a big victory for Sanders—and a pivotal moment in the Democratic Party's hard left turn toward socialism.

With 86 percent of precincts reporting, NBC News and Decision Desk HQ both projected that Sanders would win the state.

South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg was close on his heels, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D–Minn.) was expected to finish a respectable third. Meanwhile, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D–Mass.) and former Vice President Joe Biden suffered complete collapses, though neither gave any indication that they would drop out. Indeed, for the time being, this is a relatively competitive five-way race.

New Hampshire uses proportional voting, meaning that its 24 delegates would be split fairly evenly among the top three finishers: 9 for Sanders, 9 for Buttigieg, and 6 for Klobuchar.