By Michael Sol Warren
BU News Service
It was a drama-filled night for the presidential primaries, but it ended with New York businessman Donald Trump and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton extending their leads in their respective races.
Donald Trump won Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Missouri and the Northern Marianas Islands. The string of wins made sure that Trump stayed in control of the Republican race, but his failure to win Ohio could prevent him from clinching the nomination outright.
John Kasich won Ohio, a huge home state win for the governor. It is not mathematically possible for Kasich to clinch the Republican nomination, but any momentum he builds going forward could turn out to be crucial if the Republican party holds a brokered convention.
Marco Rubio suspended his campaign after failing to win his home state of Florida. Rubio dropping out could send establishment Republican voters flocking to Kasich as the race moves forward. Rubio’s failed campaign could have impacts beyond the race for the White House; he is up for re-election in the Senate but has yet to file his candidacy to defend his seat. Rubio has already expressed that he is not interested in returning to Congress, and this loss could leave a sour taste in the mouths of his constituents.
Ted Cruz took Trump to the wire in Missouri, but it looks like Trump prevailed by about half a percent in the Show-Me State. If those results hold (a recount is possible), it means that the Senator failed to win a single state. It was a disappointing night for the candidate that is closest to Trump in the delegate count, though it is still mathematically possible for Cruz to win the Republican nomination.
Trump won 161 delegates, while Cruz won 26 and Kasich won 75. Rubio won five delegates in North Carolina before he dropped out of the race. Trump now leads the Republican race with 621 total delegates, Cruz is second with 395 and Kasich is third with 138. Those numbers do not include the results from Missouri. A total of 1,237 delegates is needed to win the Republican nomination outright.
The next stops in the Republican primary are Arizona and Utah on Tuesday.
If the results in Missouri hold, Clinton won unofficially by about a half a percent. Clinton won big in North Carolina, Ohio and Florida. Her success in this round puts her in a commanding lead over Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
Sanders didn’t have the big night that he needed. The Senator lost every state, and he was only close in Illinois and Missouri.
Clinton won 326* delegates while Sanders won 224. Clinton now leads the Democratic race with 1,063 total delegates; Sanders trails with 739. Those numbers do not include the results from Missouri. A candidate needs a total of 2,383 delegates to clinch the Democratic nomination.
The next stops in the Democratic primary are Arizona, Utah and the Idaho caucus on Tuesday.
This story will be updated when the results from Missouri are final. Unofficially, Clinton and Trump won in the state.
*Delegate counts in this article refer only to pledged delegates. Unpledged “superdelegates” are not included because they are not committed to a given candidate and can change at any point before the party’s convention.
