Before the New York polls closed on Tuesday, he had already moved on to one of the next battleground states, insisting Clinton was getting “nervous” as he took to the stage at Pennsylvania State University.
However, his remarks appeared aimed at managing expectations about the scale of her anticipated victory. “We’re going to do a lot better I think than people thought we would,” he said. “We’re going to do just fine tonight in New York.”
The Vermont senator reserved his strongest language for a blistering attack on New York’s voting process after reports of widespread irregularities and missing registrations.
“We are deeply disturbed by what we’re hearing from polling places across the state,” the campaign said in a statement. “From long lines and dramatic understaffing to longtime voters being forced to cast affidavit ballots and thousands of registered New Yorkers being dropped from the rolls, what’s happening today is a disgrace.
“We need to be making it easier for people to vote, not inventing arbitrary obstacles – and today’s shameful demonstration must underline the urgent importance of fixing voting laws across the country.”
The Clinton campaign had little sympathy for complaints about New York’s closed primary system, which has been in place for many years. “We didn’t set the rules here. We came here to compete,” campaign manager John Podesta told CNN, arguing Clinton did not complain when she lost states.