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New York primary: Hillary hits Purchase College

Former senator and first lady holding first presidential primary rally in her home county of Westchester.

Jorge Fitz-Gibbon
jfitzgib@lohud.com

Hillary Clinton returned home in a fighting mood Thursday, laying out key positions on education, health care and the economy at SUNY Purchase while also taking aim at presidential primary rivals on both sides of the political aisle.

A hoarse-voiced Clinton  stressed her Westchester County ties as she addressed about 500 supporters, just hours before Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, her Democratic primary opponent, held his first major rally in the state in the Bronx.

Hillary Clinton addresses supporters during a speech at Purchase College March 31, 2016. This was Clinton's first campaign appearance in Westchester County in advance of the April 19th New York primary.

"So much of what we're hearing is contrary to who we are as New Yorkers and Americans," Clinton told hundreds of supporters during her first major primary campaign appearance in Westchester County since January. "Think about what we hear on the Republican side. It's really scary."

She even seemed energized when a group of students supporting Sanders heckled her early with a chant of, "she wins, we lose."

"The Bernie people came to say that. We’re very sorry you’re leaving," Clinton shot back "As they’re leaving, I want to say I have earned 9 million votes this election. I have 1 million more votes than Donald Trump, and I have 2 ½ million more votes than Bernie Sanders.”

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Clinton and Sanders are vying for 291 delegates up for grabs in the New York primary on April 19.

Clinton, who lives in Chappaqua, wasted no time emphasizing her adoptive home state. She took the stage with longtime U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey, an influential Harrison Democrat, and opened by thanking Westchester Democratic Chairman Reggie Lafayette.

She spoke of visits to her favorite Chappaqua haunts: Lange's Little Store deli and Crabtree's Kittle House restaurant, and even paid a visit to Horace Greeley High School while on her way to the SUNY Purchase rally.

Police escorted several vehicles to the back of the school around 11 a.m., with the motorcade leaving shortly after 12:30 p.m.

In her opening remarks an hour later at the rally, Clinton said she announced her first run for senate in 2000 from the same Purchase campus.

Clinton laid out her strategies to promote manufacturing and job growth, to increase the use of clean energy, and to tackle healthcare issues including the high cost of prescription medication.

Clinton countered Sanders' call for free college tuition with a proposal for  free community college tuition and debt-free tuition at public colleges.

Clinton also called for unity after the primary, saving her harshest critique for Republican contenders Donald Trump, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

“I just wish that there were an opportunity to actually talk and listen to each other, because we’ve got to unite," she said. "When this primary contest is over we’ve got to unite and make sure we have a Democrat in the White House.”

Clinton's stop at the Purchase campus followed a just-released Quinnipiac University poll that reported she held a 12-point lead in New York over Sanders —  a narrower gap than the 21-point margin in a Sienna College poll released March 7.

Sanders has 980 pledged delegates to date, compared to 1,243 for Clinton — 2,383 are needed to clinch the Democratic nomination.

Polls show Sanders with a slight lead over Clinton in Wisconsin, the last major primary before the New York vote. Wisconsin has 96 Democratic delegates up for grabs.

Headed into New York, Sanders has mobilized hundreds of volunteers to canvass neighborhoods and set up phone banks. The Brooklyn native has challenged Clinton to a debate in New York before the state's primaries, but the two sides have not agreed on details or the timing.

For Republicans presidential hopefuls, the Quinnipiac poll brought good news for Trump, who had the support of 56 percent of likely GOP voters in New York. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas was second with 20 percent, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich with 19 percent.

Quinnipiac polled 1,667 New York voters — including 457 Republicans and 693 Democrats  from March 22-29.

The poll had a margin of error of 2.4 percentage points, while questions about the Democratic primary had a 3.7-percentage-point margin. Questions about the Republican primary had a 4.6-percentage-point margin, according to the poll.

Journal News reporter Matt Spillane contributed to this story.

Twitter: @jfitzgibbon