COLIMBIA: Donald Trump easily defeated Nikki Haley in South Carolina’s Republican contest on Saturday, extending his winning streak as he marches toward a third consecutive presidential nomination and a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden.
The former 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 will bolster calls from Trump’s allies that Haley, his last remaining challenger, should drop out of the race. But Haley, who appeared to have outperformed expectations based on opinion polls, again 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.
With nearly 90 per cent of the votes counted, Haley received 39.4 per cent of the votes against Trump’s 59.9 per cent, a gap of 20 per cent. Statewide opinion polls prior to 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, referring to her approximate share of the vote on Saturday.