PHOENIX — Former president Bill Clinton on Sunday returned to Arizona, the state he carried 20 years ago, to campaign on behalf of his wife, Hillary Clinton, two days ahead of the state's primary.
Clinton, the 42nd president who in 1996 became the only Democrat since President Truman to win the Grand Canyon State, appeared at an afternoon rally at Central High School in Phoenix after he was scheduled to appear at a Tucson event with former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.
In Phoenix, Clinton was joined by farm labor leader and Hispanic civil rights activist Dolores Huerta, who spoke before him. The former president and Huerta were greeted by a capacity crowd of 1,100 people in the school's gymnasium.
"This is Hillary's army right here," Huerta said, urging audience members to help get out the vote.
She led the supporters in a chant of "Viva Hillary Clinton!"
The next speaker, former U.S. Rep. Ed Pastor, D-Ariz., echoed the "Viva Hillary Clinton" message.
"As Gabby Giffords would say, it matters who we vote for," Pastor said. "It's very important ... On Tuesday, we have to go out and vote for Hillary Clinton."
Giffords and her husband, retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, brought the audience to its feet when the couple made a surprise appearance to introduce Bill Clinton.
Hillary Clinton is the only candidate in the race who has the "determination" and "toughness" to stand up to the gun lobby, Kelly said, praising Bill Clinton for signing the gun-control Brady Bill. Giffords was shot in the head and nearly killed in a 2011 assassination attempt near Tucson.
Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of State and senator from New York, is the Democratic front-runner. A decisive victory in Arizona on Tuesday could help put the race away.
"We have too much to lose in this election, so we need to make sure we elect Hillary Clinton as our next president," Kelly said.
However, despite leading in the few public polls that have been released, Clinton is facing an unexpectedly fierce challenge in Arizona from her rival for her party's nomination, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
Sanders, who went zero for five states in Tuesday's primaries in Florida, Ohio, Illinois, North Carolina and Missouri, has invested heavily in TV advertising and personal campaign time in Arizona, which is seen as the biggest prize on Tuesday, when Utah and Idaho also hold caucuses.
The Clinton campaign is serious about stopping Sanders from regaining momentum ahead of Saturday's Washington, Hawaii and Alaska caucuses. In April, delegate-rich states such as New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania will weigh in.
Bill Clinton, 69, has always been a popular draw for Arizona Democrats. In the past he has come to the state to lend a hand to Democratic Senate candidates Jim Pederson and Richard Carmona.
In 1996, Clinton edged Republican nominee Bob Dole 46.5% to 44.2% to carry Arizona, a traditional red state in presidential elections. Another 7.9% of the vote went to Reform Party candidate H. Ross Perot.
Follow Dan Nowicki on Twitter: @dannowicki
