News Guide: Trump, Sanders take Michigan

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump scored victory in the industrial heartland Tuesday, pairing a win in Michigan with one in Mississippi to demonstrate staying power at the top of the Republican presidential pack.

More than half of Democratic and Republican voters in Michigan, along with Republicans in Mississippi, said trade takes away jobs, according to surveys of voters after they cast ballots.

Exit polling also found Clinton in Mississippi was supported over Sanders by 9 in 10 black voters, who accounted for nearly two-thirds of Democratic primary voters in the state.

[...] Michigan, like previous races, pointed to an age divide for Democrats, with Clinton prevailing with people 45 and older and Sanders leading among those younger than 45.

Clinton's lead in delegates is cushioned by her lopsided advantage with the party insiders known as superdelegates, who can support anyone.

All GOP contests so far have been proportional, divvying up delegates among the contenders (with some extra allocation rules added to make it really complicated).

Cruz, the conservative firebrand, has put up the toughest fight against Trump, staying within range in the delegate hunt and aiming to become the last challenger standing against the billionaire if Rubio and Kasich can't win their home states March 15.

In the last Democratic debate, in Flint, Michigan, Clinton hit Sanders hard for opposing a 2009 bill that provided billions to rescue the auto industry.

Michigan offered a window into his appeal in the industrial Midwest as he reached out for the economically disaffected and the angry with a message that has engaged Republican voters more broadly than the party and his rivals expected.

In achieving victory, Clinton again benefited from a heavy lift from black voters, exit polls found.

None of the Republican candidates made the long trip to campaign for the small delegate prize in Hawaii's GOP caucuses.

"If candidates are looking to win over the state, then I think they need to be a little bit more open to diversity and a little more centrist about their approach," Beth Fukumoto-Chang, Republican leader in the state House, said recently.