But she has yet to win a state in the north by a convincing margin – squeaking wins in Iowa and Massachusetts by only a few thousand voters – and Sanders won three of the latest four states voting over the weekend.
Crucially, several big battlegrounds next week share a similar demographic profile with Michigan, including Ohio, Illinois and Missouri, which vote on Tuesday 15 March.
But first, the two candidates are expected to clash again on the economy at a televised debate in Miami on Wednesday night.
Tempers frayed at the last debate in Flint, Michigan, at the weekend, when Clinton accused Sanders of voting against the auto industry bail-out – a charge he vehemently denies and that appears not to have swayed voters at the centre of the US car industry.
As final votes were being tallied on Tuesday night, it appeared Clinton was ahead in Detroit itself, but tied in Flint, where the two also clashed over who was doing more to help the city with its recent water crisis.
At a party for Clinton supporters in Detroit, many were shocked as results began to flood in – especially as just a day earlier their candidate had effectively called on Sanders to drop out and “end the primary”.
“I’m on the edge of my seat,” said US representative Brenda Lawrence of Michigan, a Clinton supporter. “We worked so hard for this.”
Some supporters wandered out of the bar about 10pm, confident that she would pull off a victory.
“We got this,” one woman shouted back at me as she left the bar. She patted the man next to her on the shoulder. “We’re going to win this.”
But Mike Newbecker, a field engineer and business owner based in Newport, Michigan, wasn’t as confident. “You can’t take any state for granted,” he said.
In his view, a loss in Michigan wouldn’t dent Clinton’s prospects but it could energise Sanders supporters and push the Democratic primary into the summer.
“He’s a good guy. I like his message, and we’re going to need his help in the general,” he said.
(Selorm) | 
(Nana Kwesi)