Sanders and Clinton
Sanders and ClintonReuters

Democrats and Republicans head to their third primary election today. While the Democratic party is holding their primary in Nevada, in what is being called a must-win scenario for former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, the Republican party primary will be held in South Carolina where Donald Trump hopes to continue to gather momentum.

The Nevada primary is scheduled to be held between 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. EST. The results are scheduled to be announced at 3:00 p.m. EST.

The two parties will be switching locations in the coming week with the Republicans holding their Nevada primary on the 23rd of February, and the Democrats holding their South Carolina primary on the 27th of February.

The fight for the Democratic party has been very close thus far. With Sanders losing by a small margin to Clinton in Iowa but winning a blowout victory in New Hampshire, the Nevada primary will be important for both candidates.

Early primaries such voting states such as Nevada and South Carolina will be important to build momentum for the candidates heading into “Super Tuesday”, which occurs on March 1st, during which 12 states will vote for their Democratic candidate and 13 states will vote for their Republican candidate.

In South Carolina, real estate magnate and Republican front-runner Donald Trump ins hoping to continue his momentum after winning the New Hampshire primary. He lost by four percentage points to Ted Cruz in Iowa before claiming victory in New Hampshire. Voting is open in South Carolina until 7:00 p.m. EST.

Nevada is home to many different minorities which are expected to vote for Clinton, however the state also has a large number of younger voters who are expected to vote for Sanders.

The Clark County Black Caucus, an organization located in Nevada’s largest county, came out and endorsed Sanders late Thursday. The move was a surprising one that a could help him as he tries to cut into the former secretary of state’s lead among black voters and voters in other minority groups. According to polls, Sanders is lagging behind Clinton by double digits when it comes to getting the votes of minority groups.

It is important to note that the polling systems in Nevada are known to be among the worst in the U.S. according to various U.S. polling sites.