Democrat Bernie Sanders had wins in four states.
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A more measured Trump toned down his bombastic rhetoric, taking the high road and congratulating U.S. Sen.
Hillary Clinton held on to older people and ate into Bernie Sanders’ support among the 30-to-44 crowd on Super Tuesday as her rival claimed a clear advantage with only one age group: his devoted under-30 followers.
On the Republican side, Trump emerged victorious in seven states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Vermont and Virginia, according to the AP.
In addition to prevailing in Vermont, Sanders was competing with Clinton for votes in neighboring MA, plus Colorado, Minnesota, and Oklahoma. Votes are still being counted for the Alaska caucuses.
“Paul Ryan, I don’t know him well but I’m sure I’m going to get along with him, and if I don’t, he’s going to have to pay a big price, okay?”
She attacked Trump’s pledge to “make America great again”, saying, “America never stopped being great!”.
“What we can’t let happen is the scapegoating, the flaming, the finger pointing that is going on the Republican side”, she told voters gathered in Springfield, Massachusetts. In his victory speech, he even tried to present himself as the great unifier of a broken Republican party. “Every candidate is going to have to assess the results”, he said.
“Any way you do the Republican math, the party’s five candidates are splitting the vote, “CNN reported”.
The crossfire between Trump and establishment Republicans threatened to tear the party apart at a time when it will need to generate momentum behind a prospective nominee.
Arkansas, where she served as first lady for several years and the Clintons have strong ties, is a big win for Clinton, but Texas with its 222 delegates will prove to be a bigger get for her campaign as she aims to do well in the south. Clinton is projected to receive 120 of Texas’ delegates and Sanders will get 42. “That’s frankly going to be an easy race”.
Speaking in his home state of Texas, Cruz urged other Republicans to quit the race and join him against Mr Trump.
Mr Trump had won at least 139 of the delegates at stake, before a further victory in Vermont, while Mr Cruz had won at least 52 and Mr Rubio 25.
Sanders, a long-time political independent running for a Democratic nomination for the first time, did slightly better among first-time Democratic primary voters than he did among those who had voted in a Democratic primary in previous elections. “So long as the field remains divided, Donald Trump’s path to the nomination remains more likely. It is about making a political revolution”. With the help of the Republican establishment desperate not to see Trump as victor, Cruz or Rubio or, improbably, Kasich, could win at a brokered convention with a coalition of delegates.
That was also the message from New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who recently endorsed Trump and introduced him at the press conference, though he seemed rather subdued.
Clinton had aimed for a sweep of Southern states in the delegate-heavy series of primaries and caucuses Tuesday before losing Oklahoma.
After March 15, most state races are victor take all.
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“Some of us feel like we have a responsibility to speak out when he makes outlandish, insane statements like the Muslim ban or a number of others”, said Sen. “We are so excited by what lies ahead for our campaign”.
