US Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has made gains on Hillary Clinton in two key contests ahead of Tuesday�s contests, a new poll shows.

Sanders is leading Clinton in Missouri and has closed in on her in Ohio and Illinois, according to the survey from the Public Policy Polling (PPP), released on Monday.

The senator from Vermont is trailing the former foreign secretary by just 5 points, 46 percent to 41 percent, in Ohio, where at the beginning of this month Clinton was having a 20 to 30 points lead over Sanders.

The race for the Democratic presidential nomination has tightened since Sanders' stunning victory in Michigan, where he was trailing by double-digits just weeks before the vote.

Clinton gets 48 percent in the survey compared to 45 percent for Sanders in Illinois. In Missouri, Clinton is trailing Sanders by one point, 47 percent to 46 percent, according to the PPP poll.

However, the Democratic front-runner has larger leads over the senator in Florida and North Carolina � the two other states holding contests on Tuesday.

Clinton is leading in the PPP survey 57 percent to 32 percent in Florida, and 56 percent to 37 percent in North Carolina.

Sanders has said that he sees a �path toward victory�, claiming his campaign is gaining momentum. "I think geographically, we are looking good. I think we have a path toward victory.�

According to political analyst Barry Grossman, Clinton�s lead will not hold up when the primaries move to states which traditionally are more amenable to Sanders� far more progressive political message.



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton looks on during a Get Out the Vote event at Grady Cole Center on March 14, 2016 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (AFP photo)[/caption]

�If national opinion polls are any guide, the majority of Americans prefer a Sanders presidency to a Clinton presidency and that reality is something which cannot be easily ignored as the primaries move to states which are far more amenable to a progressive message than those which have already voted,� Grossman told Press TV earlier this month.

�If Bernie Sanders can keep his supporters motivated and stay in the race long enough, he has every chance of turning the tables on Clinton with a strong showing in states like California, Washington, New York, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York and� even Florida,� the commentator predicted on March 2.

By Press TV