CHARLESTON: Donald Trump cruised to a decisive victory on Saturday (Feb 24) in the South Carolina Republican primary, blitzing rival Nikki Haley in her home state and continuing his march to the nomination and a White House rematch with Joe Biden.
Trump completed a sweep of the first four major nominating contests, converting a year of blockbuster polls into a likely insurmountable lead going into the "Super Tuesday" 15-state voting bonanza in 10 days.
While Haley repeatedly questioned the 77-year-old former president's mental fitness and warned another Trump presidency would bring "chaos", her efforts appeared to do little to damage his standing among Republicans.
The margin of victory was not immediately clear but it was expected to be significant, with major US networks calling the race within seconds of the polls closing.
Haley, a popular governor of South Carolina in the 2010s and the only woman to have entered the Republican contest, was looking to outperform expectations in her own backyard and ride into Super Tuesday with wind her sails.
But she was never able to compete in a battleground that preferred Trump's brand of right-wing "America first" populism and personal grievance over the four indictments and multiple civil lawsuits he faces.
Trump had already won Iowa by 30 points and New Hampshire by 10, while a dispute in Nevada led to the real estate tycoon running unopposed in the official contest.
The margin of Trump's victory was always the main question in South Carolina, with analysts arguing that Haley managing to whittle the gap to 15 points or less would have counted as a good night.
Trump aides have been clear however that they want to see off Haley long before the Republican National Convention in July - and are expecting the party to coalesce around the front-runner ahead of the first of his criminal trials on Mar 25.
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2024-02-25 00:45:29Z
CBMiggFodHRwczovL3d3dy5jaGFubmVsbmV3c2FzaWEuY29tL3dvcmxkL3VzLXJlcHVibGljYW4tcHJpbWFyaWVzLWRvbmFsZC10cnVtcC13aW4tbmlra2ktaGFsZXktc291dGgtY2Fyb2xpbmEtbm9taW5hdGlvbi1wb2xscy00MTQ3ODA20gEA
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