Hoping to secure a commanding lead on Super Tuesday, former President Donald Trump aimed to deal a decisive blow to his only rival for the Republican U.S. presidential nomination, Nikki Haley.
WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 09: U.S. President Donald Trump announces that he has accepted the resignation of Nikki Haley as US Ambassador to the United Nations, in the Oval Office on October 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. President Trump said that Haley will leave her post by the end of the year.
The largest voting day of the primary season saw contests in 15 states, with the former president, despite facing numerous criminal charges, dominating all but one of the previous competitions and narrowing the once extensive field to just two candidates.
While Trump won't secure enough delegates on Tuesday to formally lock in the nomination, a strong performance could heighten the pressure on his sole remaining rival.
The contests on Tuesday will allocate over one-third of Republican delegates, representing more than 70% of the total required to secure the nomination, reported Reuters.
A third consecutive nomination for Trump would confirm a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden in November's election.
Biden is expected to win Tuesday's Democratic contests easily, despite activists calling on Arab-Americans and progressives to vote "uncommitted" in Minnesota as a show of solidarity against Biden's Israel policies.
Nikki Haley's Next Move
Nikki Haley has faced mounting pressure as to whether she will continue the race, especially after losing her home state, South Carolina, ten days ago.
"As much as everybody wants to go and push me out, I'm not ready to get out yet," she told Fox News in an interview.
Trump told Fox in a separate interview that his focus was on Biden, adding: "We're going to win every state tonight."
