Biden and Trump rack up more presidential primary wins as rematch looms
Chicago, Illinois - Donald Trump handily won primaries in five states on Tuesday as President Joe Biden sailed to victory in four states, further cementing their likely 2024 rematch.
Trump won the Tuesday GOP presidential primaries in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, and Ohio, locking down all the delegates for each state.
Biden, meanwhile, overwhelmingly won Arizona, Illinois, Kansas, and Ohio, also providing a significant boost to his delegate count.
Florida did not hold a Democratic primary and automatically awarded all of its delegates to Biden, as his was the only name submitted for the ballot.
Although both candidates won by wide margins and have already secured the delegates necessary to win their respective party nominations, many voters still managed to register their discontent at the ballot box.
Nearly 19% of Arizona Republican voters turned out for Nikki Haley despite her exiting the race after Super Tuesday.
In Ohio, 13% of Democratic voters cast ballots for Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips, who also suspended his campaign after Super Tuesday.
More than 10% of Kansas voters opted for "none of the names shown."
Those high percentages likely reflect the success of the "uncommitted" vote campaign in the Democratic primaries, which is intended to pressure Biden to end his military and diplomatic support for Israel's assault on Gaza.
Other notable primary results
Tuesday also saw other notable races across voting states.
Trump-endorsed Republican Bernie Moreno won a highly watched primary race for US Senate, teeing up a November challenge to Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown.
Two Democratic congressmen, Danny Davis and Chuy García, fended off primary challengers in Illinois.
California state Representative Vincent Fong, a Republican, did not get the votes required to win outright the special election to fill retired former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's open seat. Fong will advance to a runoff on May 21, with Republican Mike Boudreaux and Democrat Marisa Wood in close contention for second place.
Fong and Boudreaux have already advanced in a separate primary election for a full term in the seat, starting January 2025.
The general election will be held Tuesday, November 5, 2024.
Cover photo: Collage: REUTERS