Hillary Clinton to Deploy Black Women Surrogates to the South in a Bid to Fend Off Sanders

The Hillary Clinton campaign will send former president Bill Clinton and 170 Black women surrogates to South Carolina and other southern states to drum up support for the Democratic nominee. The women are activists, elected officials, and entertainers who've already endorsed the former secretary of state.

According to the Washington Post, these are efforts to shore up support among African American voters ahead of the Feb. 27 South Carolina primary and throughout the country where many primaries will take place through March.
The rally in South Carolina that will feature Bill Clinton is being held at Allen University, an HBCU. The school's president, Lady June Cole, is among the Black women who have endorsed Hillary Clinton.

The many other women will host events, phone bank, and canvass door-to-door.

The Clinton campaign clearly recognizes that Black women are a crucial voting bloc. Black women voted at a higher rate than any other demographic group in 2008 and 2012.

Despite gains made by Sanders.  An NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll released last week showed Clinton leading Sanders among black voters 74 to 17 in South Carolina.

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