Mr Sanders is polling ahead of Hillary Clinton in Rhode Island 49% to 45%, according to a poll released Monday by Public Policy Polling. However, a poll released by Brown University puts Clinton in the lead 43% to 34%. Rhode Island is the only primary tonight that isn't closed, meaning registered Independents can vote, which could give Mr Sanders a boost.

On the Republican side, Donald Trump is leading at 61%.

Image source, AP

Bernie Sanders' wife, Jane, has dismissed advice from Donald Trump that the Democratic challenger should run for president as an independent candidate.

It came after the Republican front-runner tweeted that Mr Sanders had been treated "terribly" by his party.

Mrs Sanders told CNN, external on Tuesday her husband did not want to "play the role of the spoiler" for the Democrats.

"We cannot afford a Republican in the White House. We cannot afford a Republican appointing Supreme Court justices. So Bernie will not be running as an independent," she said.

Bernie Sanders is due to be giving a speech in Huntington, West Virginia, later and the BBC's Barbara Plett-Usher has been speaking to some of his supporters queuing to attend the rally.

One of them, named Bill, said he was not disheartened by reports Mr Sanders is on course to lose the nomination, and said he should not pull out of the race.

"I'm always for the underdog," he said. "As far as him losing, it depends on your perspective. I think there's a lot of issues he's brought to the forefront that the Democratic Party needs to address... and Bernie has managed to move Hillary further to the left, where she should be."

Full NBC exit polling here, external.

Image source, AP

A court in New York has ruled that a $40m (£27m) civil lawsuit against Donald Trump and his property investment school will go to trial, according to US media. Democratic New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman filed the lawsuit in 2013 alleging that Trump University, launched by the New York property tycoon in 2005, used deceptive practices and misled students about the support they would get. Mr Trump has denied any wrongdoing. 

No date has been set for the trial and it is unclear whether the presidential hopeful will be called to testify. However, in a statement on Tuesday, Mr Schneiderman said the judge had indicated a desire to move quickly, and he believed Mr Trump would be an "essential witness."

The case is one of several against the private investment school. More than 5,000 people allegedly paid over $40m to take its investment courses.

Our correspondents share images of the Cruz and Clinton rallies.

Image source, Getty Images

In Maryland, there is a Democratic nominating contest for mayor in Baltimore, which is still recovering from the aftermath of the death of Freddie Gray, who died in police custody last year. State Senator Catherine Pugh is leading a crowded field of 13 Democrats. The primary will essentially determine who will become the city's mayor because Democrats far outnumber Republicans in Baltimore.  

For the Senate, Maryland representative Donna Edwards is bidding to be the first African-American woman in the Senate in nearly two decades. However, her competitor, representative Chris Van Hollen, has managed to gain the backing of many African-American women leaders. 

With a packed primary schedule, American news networks have struggled to give each and every election night a memorable name. Remember Western Tuesday (probably not)? Or how about Super Saturday? Today many names are being thrown around as Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island vote. The Acela (pronounced a-sell-la) Primaries - after the high speed train route that runs through those states - is one of the more popular names. But not everyone can say it ...

Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter

Image source, Reuters

He has waged an insurgent campaign that’s done better than anyone predicted, but he currently trails Hillary Clinton by more than 200 delegates and is almost certain to fall further behind after tonight’s primary results.

On Tuesday his campaign team acknowledged that the outlook for victory is bleak and it may be time for a “reassessment”. Although the candidate has been adamant that he’s going to stay in the race until the last vote, in the District of Columbia in June, there are growing indications that the competitive portion of the Democratic presidential campaign is drawing to a close.

If so, it went out with a bang. The New York primary last week was acrimonious. Mr Sanders lashed out against the Democratic Party establishment and accused Mrs Clinton of lacking the judgement to be president. His campaign surrogates have condemned “Democrat whores” and rehashed Bill Clinton’s Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Image source, Getty Images

But if the talk of re-evaluation and reflection are real, the ride from here on out could get smoother for Mrs Clinton and the Democratic establishment.

There’s still a big prize on the horizon – the 6 June California primary. Mr Sanders could pick up a tidy amount of delegates from the Golden State, giving him more influence over the party platform and helping to ensure a prime speaking time during the Democratic National Convention. And if he plays nice with the Democratic Party going forward, Mr Sanders could be well positioned to wield increased influence when he returns to his day job in the US Senate, which could have a Democratic majority come next year.

The other option for Mr Sanders, who spent most of his life outside the Democratic Party, is to wage a scorched-earth campaign and fight till the bitter end, continuing to raise questions about the woman who is now the presumptive nominee.

He could even go a step farther and launch an independent presidential bid in the general election. There’s at least one man who appears eager for him take the plunge – Donald Trump.

That seems unlikely at this point, however – and not just because getting on the ballot as an independent is a labour-intensive process that has deadlines in many states that are fast approaching. Although Mr Sanders has yet to comment on Mr Trump’ suggest, his wife has already said her husband wouldn’t want to risk splitting the liberal vote and putting a Republican in the White House.

"We've been very clear right from the beginning that we will not play the role of spoiler," she said during a television interview.

It’s time for Mr Sanders to decide exactly what kind of role he does want to play, however, as it’s increasingly likely he won’t be the 2016 Democratic nominee.

Hillary Clinton heads to Philadelphia.

Bernie Sanders will be in West Virginia.

Ted Cruz will be found in Indiana.

Donald Trump is home in New York.

It is unclear where John Kasich will be tonight - we will report back.

Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter

Image source, AFP

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are poised for a dominating showing in one of the last multi-state primary days of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Last week in New York the two front-runners reasserted themselves after a string of stumbles both at the ballot boxes and in the headlines. This week they could consolidate their position at the top - or more.

It's hard to imagine a scenario where Democrat Mrs Clinton doesn't have the nomination sewn up by Wednesday morning. She is in Philadelphia on Tuesday and might want to check out hotel suites near the site of July's Democratic National Convention.

Republican Mr Trump's path to his party's nomination remains more uncertain - but a strong result on Tuesday will edge him ever-closer to the magic 1,237 delegate mark and make wresting the prize from his grasp all the more difficult.

In Pennsylvania, Democrats are vying to take back their Senate seat. The party is rallying behind Katie McGinty, who they believe can beat former representative Joe Sestak. Both President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have endorsed her. Recent polling shows Ms McGinty with a small advantage.

The mayor of blighted Western Pennsylvania city Braddock John Fetterman, who has endorsed Bernie Sanders, is running for Senate, as well, but he's polling in single digits. 

Image source, AP

Image source, Getty Images

Read our correspondent Anthony Zurcher on whether the Cruz-Kasich tag-team can beat Trump:

For the past few weeks Donald Trump has been railing against what he calls a "rigged" and "crooked" Republican nomination process and silent efforts to deny him the party's presidential bid.

As Republican National Committee head Reince Priebus has pointed out, external, the rules are the rules, and they aren't a secret.

But Mr Trump is right that there are forces coalescing to stop him. And as of Sunday night - with the announcement that presidential candidates John Kasich and Ted Cruz are coordinating their efforts in upcoming state primaries - those forces aren't so silent anymore.

Thanks for joining us for continuous coverage of the primaries in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maryland and Delaware. Our correspondents are live on Facebook talking about the primaries - join us:

Thanks for staying tuned with us for tonight's New York primary coverage. Keep up with all of our US 2016 election coverage here. 

Image source, AFP

Image source, Getty Images

AP currently projects that he is winning 86 of 95 delegates in New York, and is on track to win at least 92 - Ted Cruz has won none, and John Kasich has won two.

Hillary Clinton is currently projected to have 170 of 291 delegates in New York.

Image source, AFP