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U.S. Democratic and Republican presidential candidates had another wild weekend on the campaign trail.
The Republican race for president is far from over: Ted Cruz won the Kansas and Maine Republican caucuses on Saturday, while Donald Trump took Louisiana and Kentucky. Cruz’s large-margin victories came as a surprise, BuzzFeed News reports.
Marco Rubio won the Republican primary in Puerto Rico, which he hopes will give him momentum before the critical March 15 Republican primary in Florida. Trump said Rubio should drop out of the race, and that he wants a “Ted one-on-one.”
The Democratic results were expected: Bernie Sanders defeated Hillary Clinton in the Maine, Kansas, and Nebraska Democratic caucuses. Clinton defeated him easily in Louisiana.
And on Sunday, Clinton and Sanders got into a heated, feisty debate, most of which focused on the water poisoning crisis in Flint, Michigan (where the debate was held). Sanders lost his temper during the two-hour session, snapping at Clinton: “Excuse me, I’m talking.”
And a little extra.
Some major Republican donors are now hoping for a contested convention, something that almost never takes place, BuzzFeed News’ Tarini Parti writes. A contested convention happens if a single candidate fails to win a majority of delegates during the first round of voting. Delegates are the people that attend the Republican and Democratic national conventions (where each party selects their presidential nominee) this summer, Vox explains.
Why do people like Donald Trump? BuzzFeed News’ Ryan Broderick asked his dad. And NPR has some key takeaways from this weekend’s voting contests.
In memoriam
Nancy Reagan, former U.S. first lady and widow of former President Ronald Reagan, died in her Los Angeles home on Sunday. She was 94.
“Nancy Reagan once wrote that nothing could prepare you for living in the White House,” President Barack Obama said in a statement. “She was right, of course. But we had a head start, because we were fortunate to benefit from her proud example, and her warm and generous advice.”
Ray Tomlinson, the man credited with inventing email and putting the @ symbol on the map, died on Saturday at age 74.
WE’RE KEEPING AN EYE ON
Contracts and chaos: inside Uber’s customer service struggles.
Uber’s customer support staff is the company’s first line of defense against driver and rider misconduct. But a BuzzFeed News investigation has revealed that during Uber’s transition from a local customer support operation to a global one, these employees worked under conditions that sometimes made it difficult for them to do their jobs.
And a little extra.
Over a three-year period, Uber says it received five claims of rape and fewer than 170 claims of sexual assault via its customer service system. The company released this data in response to leaked information from its customer service database, obtained by BuzzFeed News, that showed thousands of matches for the terms “rape” and “sexual assault.”
Uber responded to BuzzFeed News’ story, saying: “Uber is a relatively young company and we’re the first to admit that we haven’t always gotten things right. But we are working hard to ensure passengers everywhere can get a safe, reliable ride, as well as to provide great customer service when things go wrong.”
For the latest news and stories, download the BuzzFeed News app for iOS and Android (in U.S. app stores only… for now).
DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THIS?
These reporters are struggling to adjust to life after covering death.
Violence exploded in Ciudad Juárez in 2008, when two powerful organized crime groups — the Juárez and Sinaloa cartels — went to war for control of one of the main drug transport routes into the U.S., BuzzFeed News’ Karla Zabludovsy kwrites. Some normalcy has returned to the city since 2013 and homicides are way down: There were 312 homicides last year, compared with a peak of 3,057 in 2010.
But years of violence at the hands of Mexico’s drug cartels made Ciudad Juárez the murder capital of the world. The city is now recovering, and BuzzFeed News’ Karla Zabludovsky joins the local crime reporters as they try to come to terms with the death they witnessed.
Lucio Soria (left) and Luz del Carmen Sosa have worked the crime beat together for years. Soria says he has photographed more than 3,500 homicide victims in Ciudad Juárez.
How an autistic child is being kept in “prison” under the UK’s Mental Health Act.
The family of 15-year-old Matthew Garnett from south London has said he’s been kept “in prison” in a psychiatric intensive care unit in Woking, England, for six months and counting, against their wishes and without access to the care he needs. BuzzFeed News’ Patrick Smith investigates why Matthew and children like him end up stuck in a system they can’t control.
Matthew, who is autistic and has learning disabilities, was detained under the UK’s Mental Health Act after a violent episode in September 2015 and he was taken to the privately run center for six to eight weeks, until a suitable clinical placement could be found. While a clinical placement has been offered, no date has been set for Matthew to leave.
Quick things to know:
At least 60 people died and another 70 were wounded Sunday in a suicide bombing south of Baghdad, Iraqi officials said. (BuzzFeed News)
Libya wants to unravel the web of human trafficking to Europe. (BuzzFeed News) And this is what life is like for Egyptians caught in a war. (BuzzFeed News)
Iranian billionaire Babak Zanjani, who helped Iran evade oil sanctions, has been sentenced to death for corruption, officials say. (Bloomberg)
Peyton Manning, two-time Super Bowl champion, will retire after 18 seasons with the NFL, the Denver Broncos said Sunday. (BuzzFeed News)
SpaceX launched a satellite into orbit, but the rocket’s experimental landing on an unmanned drone ship wasn’t successful. (BuzzFeed News) And NASA astronaut Scott Kelly grew nearly two inches after spending a year in space, but the 52-year-old lost the sudden growth spurt after just two days back on Earth. (BuzzFeed News)
Happy Monday
Getting up early is difficult. Weekends are full of distractions. And finding the energy to work out isn’t easy. But that doesn’t mean you have to skip exercise entirely. BuzzFeed’s Sally Tamarkin and Jenny Chang compiled two workouts to get you moving. Another way to start your week off right: Try one of these ~delicious~ breakfast options that aren’t too caloric. Healthy, happy Monday — let’s do this.
This letter was edited and brought to you by Claire Moses and Brianne O’Brien. You can always reach us here.