Haley has no chance

US election: Landslide for Trump on Super Tuesday

Trump spoke to his supporters of a "fantastic evening".

(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Former President Donald Trump won several landslide victories in the US Republican primaries on Super Tuesday. He clearly prevailed against his remaining opponent Nikki Haley in twelve states, including Texas, California and Virginia. With a narrow victory in Vermont, however, the former UN ambassador was able to avoid a complete electoral disaster. Among the Democrats, incumbent Joe Biden initially won by a landslide in 15 of the 16 voting states.

What was particularly painful for Haley was the clear defeat in Virginia, the only major state in which she had thought she had a chance. Trump won there with 63 to 35 percent. His victories in Massachusetts, Colorado and Minnesota were also around the two-thirds majority mark. In California, he achieved 74% and in Texas 77%. Trump also scored above the 70 percent mark in North Carolina, Maine, Arkansas and Tennessee. In Oklahoma and Alabama, he even achieved more than 80 percent.

However, the political home of far-left senator Bernie Sanders saved Haley from complete ruin. In the sparsely populated east coast state, she defeated Trump with 50 to 46 percent of the vote. Prior to Super Tuesday, the former US ambassador to the UN had only scored a symbolic victory against Trump in the capital district of Washington D.C.; in the eight remaining primaries, the president, who was voted out of office in 2020, had the better end of the stick.

(Bild: APA/AFP/CHANDAN KHANNA)

Biden: Trump wants to destroy democracy
Shortly before Haley's victory was announced, Trump appeared in front of his supporters and spoke of a "fantastic evening". In his victory speech, he did not address his rival, but instead lashed out against incumbent Biden in his usual manner. The Democrat was "the worst president in the history of the country", he criticized. For his part, Biden warned of the consequences of a possible second Trump presidency for the country. Trump is determined to destroy democracy in the USA and take away people's basic freedoms, including the ability of women to make their own decisions about their health, said Biden.

Biden won more than 90 percent of the vote in Iowa, Maine, Alabama, Tennessee and California. He landed just below that in Texas, Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, Arkansas, Vermont, Massachusetts and Utah. With 69 percent, Biden's worst result was in Minnesota, where 19 percent of primary voters deliberately did not make a decision. In the Republican stronghold of Oklahoma, he only achieved 73 percent. The incumbent even suffered an embarrassing defeat in the outlying territory of American Samoa. With just 91 votes cast, businessman Jason Palmer came out on top with 51 votes to 40.

Joe Biden, Donald Trump and Nikki Haley

(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

The only thing still outstanding on Wednesday night was the decision in Alaska, where the last polling stations were due to close at 6.00 am CET. The final results from California will probably not be available for days.

Formally, the primaries will determine the delegates who will vote for the presidential candidate at the Democratic and Republican nominating conventions in the summer. In the Republican race, Trump already had 893 votes after his first Super Tuesday victories, while Haley only had 66 votes. At least 1215 votes are required for the nomination. Biden had collected 1289 votes and was also still well short of an absolute majority (1968).

Observers see no chance for Haley
Unlike in previous years, this year's Super Tuesday lacks practically any political tension. While Biden is set to be the Democratic incumbent, observers see no chance for Haley among the Republicans. It was generally expected that she would throw in the towel after Super Tuesday. Should she not do so, this could point to a candidacy as an independent candidate. Haley had recently made it clear that, following a change in the Republican party leadership, she no longer felt bound by her original commitment to support the Republican presidential candidate in the November election. Haley recently stepped up her attacks on Trump considerably and, like Biden, sees herself as a defender of US democracy against the incumbent.

(Bild: APA)

Significance of the legal proceedings against Trump
Post-election surveys, however, point to the significance of the legal proceedings against Trump for the Republican ex-president's re-election chances. As the data provider Edison Research announced on Tuesday, 40 percent of participants in the Republican primary in Virginia were of the opinion that Trump would no longer be suitable for the presidency if he were found guilty. In North Carolina it was 32 percent and in California 23 percent.

Virginia holds open primaries, according to Ballotpedia, where any voter can vote with either party. Therefore, the sample could include Democrats. The vote in North Carolina, on the other hand, is party-bound.

Trump is facing a whole series of legal proceedings. It is assumed that a final verdict on some of them will not be reached until after the election in early November. The vote is generally expected to be close. If the leading Republican candidate wins, he could bring about the dismissal of some cases as President and, according to experts, also pardon himself. Trump has rejected the accusations in all cases and has spoken of politically motivated proceedings.