U.S. Primaries: Trump and Clinton Win, Bush Withdraws

Donald Trump, the leading Republican candidate for the U.S. presidential election, won the South Carolina primary on February 19. In the Nevada caucus, Hillary Clinton narrowly surpassed Bernie Sanders. Jeb Bush, another Republican candidate, withdrew from the race. The controversial Republican candidate, Donald Trump, had also secured nearly 40% of the votes in the New Hampshire primary on February 6, and ultimately achieved 32.5% of the votes in South Carolina, defeating his rivals. The competition for second place in South Carolina was close between Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, with Rubio edging out Cruz by just two-tenths of a percentage point, receiving 22.5% of the votes compared to Cruz's 22.3%. Trump's victory increases his chances of becoming the main Republican nominee for the presidential election, although there is still a long way to go and he has faced severe criticism from figures like Barack Obama and Pope Francis. Republicans will head to the Nevada caucus on February 23, followed by a debate in Texas, leading up to the simultaneous primary contests in several states known as 'Super Tuesday' on March 1. The caucus, or 'caucus', is an intra-party meeting where discussions take place and an agreement is reached on a single candidate. Democrats will also participate in a similar caucus on February 19, which ultimately resulted in Hillary Clinton's victory, albeit not by a large margin over Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Clinton secured 52% of the votes while Sanders garnered 48%. In the New Hampshire primary, Sanders had won with 59% of the votes. Clinton had a very close race with Sanders in the Iowa primary, ultimately winning that state by a narrow margin. Democrats will head to the South Carolina primary on February 27, continuing their competition on 'Super Tuesday' on March 1. Another significant event on Saturday night was Jeb Bush's withdrawal, the former governor of Florida. Despite attracting considerable attention before the primaries, Bush failed to achieve a satisfactory result in the primaries and ultimately announced the end of his campaign. Bush stated that he was proud of his campaign aimed at uniting America. Referring to his defeats in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, he said, 'The people have spoken, and I truly respect their decision.' The New York Times noted that in a year dominated by unconventional candidates outside the mainstream, Jeb Bush was the conventional mainstream candidate.