Bernie Sanders to rally Wednesday in Missoula, Billings

BILLINGS – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders plans a pair of Montana rallies Wednesday as he seeks to stir support ahead of the state’s June 7 Democratic presidential primary.

A 12:30 p.m. event hosted by the Vermont senator is scheduled at Caras Park Pavilion in Missoula followed by a 7 p.m. rally at Metra Park in Billings.

Both events are open to the public. They mark the first Montana appearances by a major candidate since the primary season got under way.

Twenty-eight delegates are at stake in the state, as Sanders tries to close in on Hillary Clinton in the race’s final weeks.

Clinton lost the party’s 2008 Montana primary to then-Sen. Barack Obama by 15 percentage points.

Sanders travels Thursday to neighboring South Dakota, which also has a June 7 primary.