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Trump, Clinton roll across the South on Super Tuesday
Trump carries five of seven Southern GOP primaries; Clinton takes six on Democratic side
SUPER TUESDAY SOUTHERN RESULTS
♦By Rich Shumate, Chickenfriedpolitics.com editor
(CFP) — Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton rolled across the South on Super Tuesday, carrying 11 of the 14 primaries and the lion’s share of the delegates up for grabs.
The only outliers were Oklahoma, which both Trump and Clinton lost, and the Republican primary in Texas, which went for homestate U.S. Senator Ted Cruz
Trump and Clinton won Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia in the March 1 vote. Clinton also won the Democratic primary in Texas
Super Tuesday was rough sledding for U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who came in second place in Virginia and Georgia but could only manage a third-place finish in Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Texas.
In addition to winning Texas and Oklahoma, Cruz finished second to Trump in Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee. He was third in Georgia and Virginia.
While Trump won most of the Super Tuesday primaries on the Republican side, he cleared 40 percent only one Southern state, Alabama, which he swept by 18 points.
Trump also notched double-digit wins in Georgia and Tennessee. His victories in Arkansas and Virginia were narrow, 2 and 3 percent, respectively.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Buoyed by her strong support among African-Americans, Clinton rolled up huge numbers across the South. With the exception of Oklahoma, which she lost by 10 points to U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Clinton’s support ranged from 64 percent in Virginia to 78 percent in Alabama.
Her margin of victory ranged from 29 points in Virginia to a staggering 59 points in Alabama.
The next Southern stops in the presidential race are:
- Saturday, March 5: Kentucky (GOP caucus), Louisiana (primary)
- Tuesday, March 8: Mississippi (primary)
- Tuesday, March 15: Florida (primary); North Carolina (primary)
- Tuesday, May 19: West Virginia (primary)
Southern Super Tuesday Results
ALABAMA
Trump—43%
Cruz—21%
Rubio-19%
Carson–10%
Kasich–4%
Clinton–78%
Sanders–19%
ARKANSAS
Trump—33%
Cruz—31%
Rubio-25%
Carson–6%
Kasich–4%
Clinton–66%
Sanders–30%
GEORGIA
Trump—39%
Rubio–25%
Cruz–24%
Carson–6%
Kasich–6%
Clinton–71%
Sanders–28%
OKLAHOMA
Cruz—34%
Trump—28%
Rubio–26%
Carson–6%
Kasich–4%
Sanders–52%
Clinton–42%
TENNESSEE
Trump—39%
Cruz–25%
Rubio–21%
Carson–8%
Kasich–5%
Clinton–66%
Sanders–32%
TEXAS
Cruz–44%
Trump–27%
Rubio–18%
Carson–4%
Kasich–4%
Clinton–65%
Sanders–33%
VIRGINIA
Trump—35%
Rubio–32%
Cruz–17%
Kasich–9%
Carson–6%
Clinton–64%
Sanders–35%
Ted Cruz looks forward to Super Tuesday after finishing third in Nevada
Texas senator touts himself as the only “consistent conservative” left in the GOP presidential race
♦By Andy Donohue, Chickenfriedpolitics.com contributor
LAS VEGAS (CFP) — After a third-place finish in the Nevada caucuses, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas looked forward to the pivotal Super Tuesday primaries, touting himself as the “one proven consistent conservative” remaining in the GOP presidential race.
Cruz on caucus night in Las Vegas
“Elections are about choice, and there are clear choices in this race,” Cruz told supporters at a YMCA in Las Vegas on caucus night, where he pledged to be the candidate who says no to bipartisan corruption, stand up to special interests and lobbyists and rein in debt.
“Who has lead the fight against amnesty? Who has lead the fight against the Affordable Care Act? Who has lead the fight defending life, marriage and religious liberty?” he asked.
Cruz also assured the Nevada crowd that, as a Texan, he understands how “folks in Nevada kind of like their guns” and is counting on Americans in Super Tuesday states feeling the same.
On international issues, Cruz emphasized his opposition to the Iran nuclear deal, which he vowed to “rip to shreds” on his first day as president. He also said his administration would “stand unapologetically alongside the nation of Israel.”
Cruz also framed himself as the candidate who can best fight Islamic terrorism and “keep American safe.”
Cruz finished behind Donald Trump and U.S. Senator Marco Rubio in the Silver State, winning six delegates. He is now moving into Super Tuesday on March 1, when 13 states will hold primaries or caucuses.
Among those states is Texas, where polls show Cruz locked in a battle with Trump for the Lone Star State’s 155 delegates.
Rubio, Cruz tie for second in South Carolina primary; Bush drops out
Former Florida governor exits race in which he was the early front-runner
♦By Rich Shumate, Chickenfriedpolitics.com editor
COLUMBIA, South Carolina (CFP) — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida rode a wave of last-minute support to surge into a tie for second place with U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas in the pivotal South Carolina primary.
Meanwhile, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush–who had been the front-runner early in the 2016 race–dropped out after finishing a distant fourth in the February 20 vote.
That leaves Rubio and Cruz as the only Southerners left in the race for the White House, which at one point had featured nine candidates from the region.
The two senators each took 22 percent in the Palmetto State, running 10 points behind the winner, Donald Trump. Rubio’s margin over Cruz was less than 1,100 votes. out of nearly 738,000 cast.
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio
But after finishing fifth in New Hampshire, catching Cruz was a significant coup for Rubio in his quest to become the mainstream alternative to Trump, particularly now that Bush is out of the race.
“After tonight, this has become a three-person race, and we will win the nomination,” Rubio told supporters at a rally in Columbia, where he was flanked by South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. Her endorsement of Rubio in the closing days of the campaign is being credited with helping his strong finish.
But across town, Cruz, who won Iowa and came in third in New Hampshire, insisted that it was his campaign that had defied expectations.
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz
“The screaming you hear now from across the Potomac is the Washington cartel in full terror that the conservative grassroots are rising up,” Cruz said.
However, while both senators were claiming a moral victory, Trump not only won statewide but in all six congressional districts, which means that under the rules of the South Carolina GOP, he will get all 50 of the delegates up for grabs.
An emotional Bush announced his departure to supporters in Columbia after winning less than 8 percent of the vote. He finished sixth in Iowa and fourth in New Hampshire.
“I’m proud of the campaign that we’ve run to unify our country and to advocate conservative solutions that would give more Americans the opportunity to rise up and reach their God-given potential,” he said. “But the people of Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina have spoken, and I really respect their decision.”
The son and brother of presidents, Bush started the race as the early front-runner, fortified by a super-PAC that had raised more than $100 million. But Trump’s entry into the race took the wind out of Bush’s political sails, and he never recovered.
Bush also had to deal with a challenge from Rubio, who had been a close political ally when they served together in Tallahassee.
After Bush’s withdrawal, Rubio offered an olive branch, expressing his “incredible affection and admiration” for a man he called “the greatest governor in the history of Florida.”
“Jeb Bush has many things to be proud of,” Rubio said.
Cruz, too, spoke warmly about Bush, saying he had brought “honor and dignity” to the race and that he was “a man who didn’t go to the gutter and engage in insults and attacks”–a not-too-veiled swipe at the front-running Trump.
Southern Republicans bunch in third place in New Hampshire primary
Cruz, Bush and Rubio finish within a percentage point of each other, behind Trump and Kasich
♦By Rich Shumate, Chickenfriedpolitics.com
MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (CFP) — The three Southern Republicans in the presidential race all bunched together in a battle for third place in the first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary.
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas came in at 11.6 percent in the February 9 vote, while former Florida Governor Jeb Bush was at 11.1 percent and U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida at 10.5 percent, with just 3,200 votes separating Cruz and Rubio.
Donald Trump won the night with 35.3 percent, while Ohio Governor John Kasich had a surprising second place showing at 15.8 percent.
New Hampshire was redemption for Bush, who was given up for dead after a weak showing in the Iowa caucus. But is was a bad night for Rubio, who could not maintain his momentum from a third-place finish in Iowa after a rough debate performance on the Saturday before the primary.
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio
“Our disappointment tonight is not on you. It’s on me,” Rubio told supporters in Manchester. “I did not do well on Saturday night. So listen to this–that will never happen again.”
Bush–who entered the race as the favorite, only to see his campaign eclipsed by Trump’s surge–was clearly jubilant after a New Hampshire result that put him back in the race as it heads to South Carolina, a state where his family has deep political roots.
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush
“They said that the race was now a three-person race between two freshman senators and a reality TV star,” Bush said in a speech to supporters in Manchester, referring to Trump, Cruz and Rubio. “And while the reality TV star is still doing well, it looks like you all have reset the race.”
But Cruz, who won Iowa but wasn’t expected to do well in New Hampshire, claimed a moral victory after “a result that all of us were told was impossible.”
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz
“Once again the talking heads and the Washington insiders were confident that our wave of support would break against the rock of the Granite State,” he told supporters in Hollis. “Tonight, the men and women here and across this great state proved them wrong.”
After Iowa and New Hampshire, Trump leads in the delegate count with 17, followed by Cruz, 10; Rubio, 7; Bush, 3; and Kasich, 3. A candidate needs 1,237 delegates to win the GOP nomination.
The next contest for Republicans is the South Carolina primary on February 20.
U.S. Senator Rand Paul drops out of presidential race to concentrate on Senate re-election
Paul’s decision comes two days after he finished fifth in the Iowa GOP caucus
LOUISVILLE (CFP) — U.S. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky has ended his quest for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and will now concentrate on winning a second term in the Senate.
U.S. Senator Rand Paul
“Today, I end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of liberty,” Paul said in a statement announcing his departure. “Brushfires of liberty were ignited, and those will carry on, as will I.”
Paul’s decision came just two days after he finished in fifth place in the Iowa presidential caucus, winning just 4.5 percent of the vote. He will now turn to his re-election race in Kentucky, which he was pursuing simultaneously with his presidential bid.
Paul, 53, ran a campaign appealing to the GOP’s libertarian wing, differing from many of his competitors by calling for less international intervention and opposing counterterrorism surveillance programs that he believed threatened civil liberties.
Considered a potential frontrunner early in the campaign, Paul’s campaign failed to catch fire and became mired in single digits in national polls.
The Kentucky GOP changed its presidential nominating contest to a caucus to facilitate Paul’s political double-dipping. But he had been under increasing pressure from within his party to abandon his floundering White House quest and focus on the Senate race, which intensified after he drew a high-profile Democratic challenger, Lexington Mayor Jim Gray.
Paul, an eye surgeon from Bowling Green, won election to the Senate in 2010 with Tea Party support. He is the son of former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who made three unsuccessful tries for the White House.
Paul’s departure leaves three Southern Republicans in the presidential race — U.S. senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush,
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