Bernie Sanders claims 'very strong victory' in Iowa based on popular vote count

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) isn't waiting around anymore.

As uncertainty still swirls around the results of the Iowa caucuses, Sanders on Thursday declared a "very strong victory" in the state nearly three days after its election began. Preliminary — and reportedly flawed — results show former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg with a slight edge when it comes to delegate counts in the state, but Sanders says his "decisive margin of victory" is based on the fact that "6,000 more Iowans came out to support us than any other candidate."

Sanders' Thursday tweet coincided with his half-hour press conference on the Iowa results and the campaign's future, which made the same case for his victory. Just before Sanders spoke, Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez called for "the Iowa Democratic Party to immediately begin a recanvass" of its caucuses to "assure public confidence in the results."

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