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Clinton hopes S.C. win will sway Super Tuesday voters

The latest poll shows Hillary Clinton with a significant lead over Bernie Sanders in the South Carolina Democratic primary
Clinton and Sanders battle in S.C. primary 03:01

Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders go head to head Saturday in South Carolina's Democratic primary.

A preview of Super Tuesday's big contests 04:52

The latest poll shows Clinton with a significant lead over Sanders, 58 percent to nearly 32 percent, according to RealClearPolitics.

Saturday's primary is a key step toward Super Tuesday next week, when both parties vote in a dozen states.

CBS News' Nancy Cordes reports the Clinton team sees South Carolina as the state that will finally re-establish her as the indisputable front-runner.

They're also hoping that not just a win but a big win will show that she can dominate in the South and she can dominate with minorities, and they're hoping that the people who get that message are the voters in the 12 states that go to the polls in three days on Super Tuesday.

Clinton and Sanders both made their final pitches Friday night in the state's capital city, Columbia.

"Let's go make America all it should be again," Clinton said.

"We are going to invest for our young people," Sanders said.

Clinton has camped out in the state all week, protecting her lead.

Dickerson on feisty GOP debate, Super Tuesday 01:49

She, her husband and daughter did a combined nine campaign events on Friday.

And prominent African-Americans like Congressman Jim Clyburn and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker have gone to bat for her.

Cordes asked Booker what a senator from New Jersey was doing in South Carolina.

"Well, you know, there's an old saying that we're all in this together, so what happens in South Carolina affects the whole country," Booker said.

At an Orangeburg fish fry Friday night, Sanders opened with this line: "In 1963, I was there with Dr. King for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom."

Flood of attacks, Tweets and ads after GOP debate 04:50

But all that was overshadowed Friday by the Republican food fight, which was just fine with the Democrats.

In a statement, the Democratic National Committee snickered, "If anyone is wetting their pants, as Rubio suggested today, it's the Republican establishment."

Priorities USA, the super PAC supporting Clinton, released a statement on the "state of the GOP race," comprised solely of a picture of a seal cracking up.

Clinton herself didn't mention Donald Trump, electing to let the Republicans turn on each other. When CBS News asked Sanders about the battle between Trump and Marco Rubio, he waved his hand at the question.

A few weeks ago, the Sanders team was predicting a comeback in South Carolina, but they are not doing that anymore, especially after Clinton beat him with African-Americans in Nevada by 50 points.

In fact, Sanders isn't sticking around in South Carolina to watch the results come in Saturday night. He is leaving first thing Saturday morning for Texas and Minnesota, a couple of Super Tuesday states.

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