Donald Trump wins South Carolina, beating Nikki Haley in her home state
- The big win bolsters calls from Trump’s allies that Haley, Trump’s last remaining challenger, should drop out of the presidential nomination race
- Haley has vowed to fight on at least through ‘Super Tuesday’ on March 5, saying her vote share shows large numbers of Republicans are still uneasy about Trump
Donald Trump easily defeated Nikki Haley in South Carolina’s Republican contest on Saturday, extending his winning streak as he marches towards a third consecutive presidential nomination and a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden.
The former United States president had been widely favoured to win the Southern state, despite his litany of criminal charges and Haley’s status as a native of South Carolina who won two terms as governor.
The big win bolstered calls from Trump’s allies that Haley, his last remaining challenger, should drop out of the race.
But Haley, who outperformed expectations based on opinion polls, defiantly insisted she would fight on at least through “Super Tuesday” on March 5, when Republicans in 15 states and one US territory will cast ballots.
Trump won with 59.8 per cent support against 39.5 per cent for Haley with 99 per cent of the expected vote tallied, according to Edison Research. Statewide opinion polls before Saturday had given Trump an average lead of 27.6 percentage points, according to the tracking website 538.
“Forty percent is not some tiny group,” Haley said of her vote share. “There are huge numbers of voters in our Republican primaries who are saying they want an alternative.”
Trump has dominated all five Republican primary contests thus far – in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, the US Virgin Islands and now Haley’s home state – leaving Haley with no evident path to the Republican nomination.
