Sanders to visit SIU-Edwardsville as Illinois primary nears

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) - Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders plans a campaign stop at Southern Illinois University's Edwardsville campus.

A campaign statement says the U.S. senator from Vermont is scheduled for a 10 a.m. Friday appearance at the Vadalabene Center, the SIUE campus' 4,000-capacity arena.

Sanders comes to Madison County ahead of the March 15 Illinois primary election.

He earned Super Tuesday primary victories in Minnesota, Colorado, Oklahoma and Vermont, but trails Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton in the delegate count.

The Belleville News-Democrat (bit.ly/1UzGuY9 ) reports Presidents Barack Obama, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy were among the former presidents to visit the Metro East suburbs of St. Louis while in office or on the campaign trail.