时代周刊:民主党初选形势日益明朗(3)（在线收听）

Biden had made some changes to his campaign after his fourth-place showing in Iowa on Feb. 3,

2月3日，爱荷华州开局竞选日，拜登便屈居第四，随后，他调整了自己的竞选策略，

only to fare even worse in the next contest, finishing fifth in the Feb.11 New Hampshire primary.

但接下来的竞争成绩反而更糟了——2月11日，新汉布什尔州初选拜登的得票率已经下滑至第五。

He was second in the Feb.22 Nevada caucuses but with just 20% of the vote.

尽管2月22日内华达州的政党基层会议上他总算跃居第二，得票率也仅有20%。

His debate performances were uneven, and his campaign so low on money

他在各地的辩论环节的表现也是参差不齐，不仅如此，竞选经费也颇为紧张，

he couldn't afford to place major advertising buys, build a ground game or even poll the Super Tuesday states.

没钱投放大型广告，没钱组织拉票活动，甚至都没钱就超级星期二的初选民意展开调查。

But he benefited from events outside his control.

反倒是超出其掌控范围的事情成就了他。

Bloomberg's dismal debate performances discouraged moderates still looking for a deus ex machina.

布隆伯格糟糕的辩论表现令仍在指望奇迹发生的温和派大失所望。

And Sanders' early successes alarmed rank-and-file Democrats looking for a centrist nominee in November.

桑德斯初期的优异成绩也给试图在11月大选时支持中间派候选人的普通民主党人敲响了警钟。

All the while, Biden kept insisting that the largely African-American Democratic electorate of South Carolina would stick with him.

在此期间，拜登一直坚称，非裔为主的南卡罗来纳州民主党选民会继续支持他。

And in the end it did, thanks in part to a crucial endorsement from the influential South Carolina Representative Jim Clyburn.

事实证明确实如此，但这在一定程度上要归功于人气颇高的南卡罗来纳州众议员吉姆·克莱本的得力支持。

Biden's landslide there changed the race.

拜登在该州的压倒性胜利一举扭转了比赛局势。

He claimed to have raised $15 million in three days and was endorsed by a parade of Democratic Party elders

他声称，三天之内他便筹集到了1500万美元的竞选资金，还得到了一众民主党元老，

and elected officials as well as Buttigieg and Klobuchar.

民选官员以及（竞争对手）皮特·布蒂吉格和（明尼苏达州参议员）艾米·克洛布查尔的支持。

When Minnesota broke Biden's way, headquarters erupted into chants of "Amy!"

拜登在明尼苏达州的选举顺风顺水，选举中心爆发出来阵阵呐喊声，“艾米！”“艾米！”“艾米！”……

Several Biden fundraisers told TIME that after South Carolina,

数名负责为拜登筹款的工作人员告诉《时代》周刊，在南卡罗来纳州之后，

donors who had contributed the maximum $2,800 to his rivals swiftly re-opened their wallets.

那些曾经为拜登的对手捐赠了高达2800美元竞选资金的选民迅速又敞开了他们的钱包。

"There's been an outpouring of people" wanting to donate,

想捐款的人“大批大批地涌现了出来”，

says Alan Patricof, a top Biden fundraiser and New York City venture capitalist.

据拜登的主要筹款人、纽约市风险投资家艾伦·帕特里科夫透露。

"It's a much more positive atmosphere."

“（支持拜登的）氛围比之前浓厚多了。”

Exit polls indicated that Biden's strongest voter demographics, African Americans and older Democrats,

出口民调显示，在最新一波受过教育的郊区温和派选民的支持的感染下，

provided the base for his March 3 victories, bolstered by a late-breaking wave of educated suburban moderates.

拜登最强大的选民后盾非裔美国人和较为年长的民主党人为他在3月3日的胜利提供了有力的支撑。

An unusually high proportion of the electorate, more than 40%, told pollsters they chose a candidate in the final few days,

超过40%——这一比例高得有些异常——的选民告诉民调机构，他们都是最后几天才做出了投票决定，

an indication of the uncertainty and concern as Democrats grapple with the central question of how best to take on President Trump in November.

这表明，民主党人正在设法解决如何才能最好地在11月份大选之时同特朗普总统一较高下这一中心问题，选民们却对该党的候选人依然抱有不确定和担忧。

Sanders worked hard to expand the passionate movement he began to build in 2016,

桑德斯则试图重点拉拢少数族裔，工薪阶层和年轻一代的选民，

by focusing on reaching out to minority, working class and young voters while arguing that he is the most electable candidate.

同时主张自己是最值得支持的候选人，藉此大力壮大他2016年培养起来的热情洋溢的后援队伍，

But turnout to date has not shown that he can vastly expand the electorate,

但截至目前，投票率并未显露出他真能大幅壮大选民队伍的迹象，

and voters in most of the March 3 states appeared unconvinced.

3月3日举行初选的大多数州的选民似乎也不相信他的主张。

Exit polls showed voters prioritizing a candidate they thought could win in November over one who agreed with their views by a 2-to-1 ratio.

出口民调显示，优先支持他们认为可能在11月获胜的候选人的选民人数与优先支持与自己观点一致的候选人的选民人数的比例为2:1。

It was Biden, not Sanders, who could claim to be driving up turnout in places like Virginia, where nearly twice as many people voted as did in 2016

有资格声称自己提高了弗吉尼亚州等地投票率的是拜登而非桑德斯——今年，弗吉尼亚周选民的投票热情几乎是2016年的两倍，

and the former Vice President topped the Vermont Senator by 30 points.

相比佛蒙特州参议员桑德斯，前副总统拜登以近30个百分点的领先优势成功拿下该州。