Is Bernie Sanders right that neither he nor Hillary Clinton will clinch nomination next week?
Bernie Sanders claimed on Tuesday that neither he nor Hillary Clinton will win the number of pledged delegates needed to win the nomination next Tuesday.
"On June 7, no candidate will end up with the number of pledged delegates needed to win the nomination," Sanders told a crowd in Monterey, California.
Sanders went on to say, "Either Secretary Clinton and myself will need the support of superdelegates."
But the number needed to clinch the nomination -- 2,383 -- is a number that is supposed to include superdelegates -- unpledged elected officials -- which make up about 15 percent of the total 4,765 delegates. There are a total of 4,051 pledged delegates and 714 unpledged superdelegates. Barack Obama would not have clinched the nomination with pledged delegates alone in 2008 -- by the time the primaries had played out, he had 51 percent of the pledged delegates. That year, Clinton had 49 percent of the pledged delegates and led in popular vote totals, but lagged in superdelegates, with 34 percent of their support.
While neither can reach 2,383 with pledged delegates alone, by the end of primary season, one candidate will have won a clear majority of pledged delegates.
According to CBS News' estimates, Clinton has 1,769 pledged delegates and needs 257 more to reach a majority of pledged delegates. To get there, Clinton needs to win just a third of the pledged delegates in the remaining contests. Washington, D.C. holds the last primary on June 14 where 20 delegates will be available.
Sanders has 1,495 pledged delegates and would need to win 68 percent of the remaining pledged delegates to win a majority of them.
On Tuesday, six states will hold primary contests: California, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota and South Dakota. That means 694 pledged delegates are up for grabs that day.
Clinton is the clear leader with superdelegates and needs just 71 more delegates -- pledged and superdelegates -- to clinch the nomination. Sanders has said that if he wins a majority of pledged delegates, he could convince superdelegates to change their minds.
The Clinton campaign has expressed confidence that Clinton will at least win New Jersey on Tuesday and hopes to win California, where the race could be close.
Still, by June 7, in all likelihood, Clinton will have won both a majority of pledged delegates and a majority of superdelegates.
CBS News' Jennifer De Pinto and Kylie Atwood contributed to this report.
