Kathmandu: Donald Trump won a string of Republican presidential contests on Saturday, edging closer to becoming the party’s candidate in November’s election as he attacked his likely opponent Joe Biden.
The former president won the Missouri, Michigan and Idaho caucuses comprehensively, continuing his clean sweep of states so far.
Trump, 77, told supporters at a rally in Virginia that he was “on a rocket to the Republican nomination”. He is on track to secure it next week. His last remaining rival in the race, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, is still seeking her first victory and is without a clear path to the nomination given Trump’s commanding lead.
He is projected to win all of the delegates available in Missouri and all in Idaho, according to the BBC’s US partner CBS news, as well as all of those remaining in Michigan. A third of delegates in that state were awarded earlier this week after a primary that Trump won.
Delegates represent their state or district at the respective party’s national convention, and decide who its presidential nominee will be. So far Trump has secured 247 Republican delegates, according to CBS, far more than Ms Haley’s 24.
In the Virginia capital of Richmond on Saturday, thousands queued for several hours to hear Trump speak. He vowed to “win big” on Tuesday, when 15 states will choose their presidential candidate on a day that could put him within striking distance of the nomination. “We got numbers today that were unbelievable,” he told the crowd.
But his speech in Virginia – and at an earlier event in Greensboro, North Carolina – largely focused on migration at the US-Mexico border, a message which polls show resonates well with his base. In more than a dozen interviews with the BBC on Saturday, his supporters said the issue was among their primary concerns.
Sharon Roberts, whose son Sean died of a fentanyl overdose in 2018, said she feared an “out of control” border would lead to other families experiencing similar losses. “I’m 100% for Trump, because he’ll get these borders closed,” she said.
News Source: BBC