Columbia: With the US presidential race hotting up, controversial Republican front-runner Donald Trump today steamrolled his rivals to clinch the South Carolina primary while Democrat Hillary Clinton narrowly beat Bernie Sanders in Nevada to boost her lacklustre campaign. Trump’s win, following his victory in New Hampshire earlier this month and a second-place finish in the Iowa caucuses, gives the 69-year-old real estate tycoon a critical burst of momentum heading into Nevada’s Republican caucuses on Tuesday and the slate of 13 states voting on Super Tuesday, March 1.
In another significant development, the Republican presidential pack shrank as Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush said he is suspending his campaign after a poor showing in South Carolina.
For all practical purposes, the race for White House has now narrowed down to five persons with Trump and former Secretary of State Clinton having an edge over the rest. The other three major candidates in the fray are — Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Texas Senator Ted Cruz from the Republican Party and two-term Senator from Vermont Bernie Sanders from the Democratic side. Trump’s win could unnerve the Republican establishment, since South Carolina has sided with the eventual nominee in every presidential race since 1980, apart from 2012.
“I want to begin by thanking the people of South Carolina. This is a special night,” Trump said in his victory speech. “There is nothing easy about running for president, I can tell you. It’s tough, it’s nasty. It’s mean. It’s vicious. It’s beautiful. When you win, it’s beautiful,” he told his cheering supporters.
His wife, Melania, also made rare public remarks. “I want to say congratulations to my husband,” she said, noting that he has “been working very hard.”
In a tense battle for second place after Trump topped with 32.5 per cent votes, Rubio at 22.5 per cent edged past Cruz who bagged 22.3 per cent votes.
Meanwhile, at the Democratic primary in Nevada, 68-year-old Clinton and her supporters breathed a sigh of relief following a narrow win over Sanders. Clinton beat Sanders by bagging over 5 per cent votes more than her rival.
“I am so, so thrilled and so grateful to all of my supporters out there,” Clinton told a crowd of cheering supporters in Las Vegas. “Some may have doubted us but we never doubted each other.”
Clinton’s Nevada win comes just a week-and-a-half after she lost to Sanders by double-digits in New Hampshire. Her campaign is hoping the win will serve to undercut Sanders’ momentum as they head next into several delegate-heavy contest.
