Biden says he is still confident heading into South Carolina

By Kelsey Tamborrino
·1 min read

Former Vice President Joe Biden said he remained confident that he will win the upcoming South Carolina primary with strong support from African Americans in the state.

"I feel good about where we are. I feel good about going into South Carolina," Biden told CBS’ "Face the Nation" in an interview airing Sunday. "And I feel good about the kind of support I've had with African Americans around the country."

Biden, who finished in fourth and fifth, respectively, in Iowa and New Hampshire, has previously pointed to the South Carolina primary as crucial for his campaign. The former president claimed a second-place finish in Nevada on Saturday with strong turnout among African Americans.

As Biden heads into the Feb. 29 South Carolina primary, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders' wins have seemingly led to potential cracks in Biden's firewall in the state, where two-thirds of the primary electorate is black.

"So for South Carolina, what does this indicate to you? Because in the past, you were pretty confident you could pull off a win there," host Margaret Brennan asked Biden in Sunday's interview.

"I still am," Biden replied.

A Winthrop University poll released last week showed Biden holding a narrow lead over Sanders in South Carolina. In the poll, Biden earned 24 percent support, followed by 19 percent support for Sanders and 15 percent for Tom Steyer. Among black voters, the poll showed a plurality still supporting Biden — 31 percent supported the former vice president, to 18 percent for Steyer and 17 percent for Sanders.