Donald Trump had a “amazing night” as he closed in on the Republican presidential nomination with easy victories in the Super Tuesday primaries, setting up a nearly guaranteed rematch with President Joe Biden in November.
On the biggest day of the 2024 race yet, fifteen states and a US territory held nomination contests, with both candidates vying for a second term in the White House.
Texas and California were among Trump’s major triumphs over Nikki Haley, as he gained support in every demographic, including conservative southern states and more liberal battlegrounds like Virginia, where his longshot competitor had the best chance.
He was denied a clean sweep as Haley won a close race in the northeastern state of Vermont, but the former president told supporters it had been “an amazing night and an amazing day,” with US media projecting his victory in 14 states.
“This is a big one. They tell me, the pundits and otherwise, that there has never been one like this, never been anything so conclusive.”
This year’s Super Tuesday lacked suspense because Biden and Trump had already won their parties’ selections.
Haley, a former UN ambassador, has failed to obstruct Trump’s march to the nomination since coming third in Iowa’s first contest in January.
Trump has a profile unlike any other US presidential candidate in history, having been impeached twice, losing by seven million votes in 2020, and facing 91 felony charges in four trials.
Nonetheless, his popularity among working-class, rural, and white voters has catapulted him to the nomination during one of the most lopsided primary seasons in modern history.
Haley, popular among affluent suburban voters and university graduates, was expected to capture the nomination with a small number of delegates.
Biden v. Trump, again?
“I expect Nikki Haley to finish and drop out. There is no pathway after tonight for her to get the nomination,” Kenny Nail, a grassroots Republican activist, told AFP at Trump’s Florida watch party.
Maine, one of three states that had tried to keep Trump off the ballot due to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the assault on the US Capitol, was among his successes.
The Supreme Court rejected the expulsion effort on Monday, paving the way for Trump’s participation in all states.
States up for grabs On Tuesday, Republicans offered 70% of the delegates required to nominate their nominee for the July convention.
Trump was unable to mathematically close out the race, but he expects to be anointed by March 19 at the latest, according to his team.
Haley, who set low expectations for Super Tuesday, flew to Charleston, South Carolina, to watch the results but was not anticipated to speak and had no plans for Wednesday.
Some primary observers expect the 52-year-old to stop her campaign soon, but she maintains that she is more likely than Trump to defeat Biden in November and may continue.
“There remains a large block of Republican primary voters who are expressing deep concerns about Donald Trump,” her spokesperson said late Tuesday.
Biden was on the Democratic primary ballot, but he had scant opposition from two outsider candidates, making re-nomination a formality.
He is scheduled to deliver the annual State of the Union address to Congress on Thursday, which will allow him to spell out his campaign agenda.
The 81-year-old won convincingly — with the exception of a setback in American Samoa, a tiny Pacific Ocean territory — and warned that Trump was “determined to destroy” US democracy.
Trump will “do or say anything to put himself in power,” Biden stated in a campaign message.
Stephanie Perini-Hegarty voted for Biden in Quincy, Massachusetts.
“I think we need a leader who is not involved in any corruption, and who is going to look out for the best interests of the people,” the 55-year-old told AFP.