Super Tuesday
US Republican Haley wins second primary against Trump
It is unclear how long Haley will remain in the race, as she is effectively no longer given a chance to beat Trump. photo
© Tony Gutierrez/AP/dpa
Trump is racking up one victory after another in the Republican primaries. His last remaining competitor now achieves another mini-success – in an otherwise rather hopeless duel.
In the US Republican presidential primaries, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley has her second victory in a duel against the former president Donald Trump arrived. Haley won the party’s internal vote in the state of Vermont, as the AP news agency reported, citing its own forecasts. Haley’s renewed success gives her another symbolic success, but it does not change Trump’s clear dominance in the race. In the other votes on the so-called Super Tuesday with primaries in more than a dozen states, Trump once again showed his strength and achieved one victory after another.
Haley benefited from having an “open” primary in Vermont – meaning voters didn’t have to be registered with the Republican Party to vote. In the small state in the northeast of the USA with less than 650,000 inhabitants, only 17 delegate votes were available for the nomination party conference, at which the Republicans want to elect their candidate for the presidential election in early November in Milwaukee in mid-July. This means that the result does not really change the balance of power between Haley and Trump in the Republican primaries. After various primary election victories, Trump is far in the lead in the number of delegates.
Internal party primaries
Anyone who wants to become a presidential candidate in the USA must first prevail in the party’s internal primaries. The primary election voting process is complex and varies from state to state. 2,429 delegates will meet at the Republican nomination convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin this summer. To win, a candidate must gather at least 1,215 delegates behind them.
On Sunday, Haley recorded her first election victory in the primary duel against Trump and won the party’s internal vote in the capital district of Washington. In doing so, she broke Trump’s winning streak, who had previously easily won all party primaries. However, he is also the clear favorite in the further votes.
Trump has great support among the party base
Despite various scandals, escapades and a chaotic term as president, the 77-year-old has great support among the party base. Even major legal problems in the election year – four indictments in criminal proceedings and significant damages in civil proceedings – have so far not harmed Trump politically.
It is unclear how long Haley will remain in the race, as she is effectively no longer given a chance to beat Trump. Even in her home state of South Carolina, where Haley was once governor, Trump won by a wide margin at the end of February. Supporters of the ex-president have been calling on the 52-year-old for weeks to give up and make way for Trump.