Donald Trump, whose turbulent single term in the White House transformed the Republican Party, tested the resilience of democratic institutions in the United States and threatened America’s alliances abroad, will lead the Republican Party in a third consecutive presidential election after winning his party’s presidential nomination on Tuesday.
With victories in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state, Donald Trump exceeded the threshold of 1,215 delegates needed to become the presumptive Republican nominee. He will formally accept his nomination at the Republican National Convention in July, at which time he could be both a presidential candidate and convicted in a first criminal case.
Donald Trump has been charged in four separate criminal investigations and his first trial, centered on payments made to a porn actress, is scheduled to begin March 25 in New York.
President Joe Biden also clinched the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday with a decisive victory in the swing state of Georgia, overcoming concerns about his leadership within his own party.
The victories usher in what will likely be an extraordinarily negative general election campaign that risks deepening the country’s searing political and cultural divisions over the next eight months, as a rematch takes place between the two politicians.
Overall, Tuesday marked a watershed moment for a nation uneasy, to say the least, about its electoral choices in 2024.
Mr. Trump faces 91 counts in four criminal cases involving manipulation of classified documents and an attempt to overturn the results after the 2020 election, among other alleged crimes. He also faces increasingly pointed questions about his political plans and his relationships with some of the world’s most criticized dictators. Mr. Trump met privately on Friday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, accused of rolling back democracy in his country.
Mr. Biden, 81, was working to assure a skeptical electorate that he remains physically and mentally capable in his job, the most important in the world.
He also faces dissension within his party’s progressive base, angry that he has not done more to stop Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. Last month in Michigan, a “non-committal” protest vote garnered more than 100,000 votes and secured the support of two Democratic delegates.
Ahead of Tuesday’s vote, signs scattered across Seattle urged primary attendees to vote “no strings attached” again, with some signs reading: “Over 30,000 dead.” Vote for a ceasefire on Tuesday March 12. »
A similar movement has been instigated in Georgia, where local politicians and religious leaders are pushing Mr. Biden to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
“The most valuable tool we have to hold this president accountable for his harmful policies is our vote,” Rami Al-Kabra, a Palestinian Muslim American and deputy mayor of Bothell, said before the March 12 election. city located about 21 km northeast of Seattle.
Associated Press writers Hallie Golden in Seattle, Fatima Hussein in Manchester, New Hampshire, and Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.
