Winner takes it all, loser takes the fall on pivotal day in Republican race

The race for the Republican nomination for President reaches a pivotal day today, one that could see Donald Trump virtually nailed on for a run at the White House. The hopefuls are fighting for “winner take all” states - places like Florida and Ohio - which award all delegates to the person with the most votes. The 165 on offer in these two states alone could change the race dramatically overnight in a number of ways. The conventional wisdom is that if Cuban-American Marco Rubio loses his home state of Florida, his campaign is over.

At our best, Americans have rejected demagogues and fear mongers. Donald Trump is not who we are.

Hillary Clinton

Further north in Ohio, the state’s governor John Kasich is also fighting for his political life. But the race is much closer there, and Kasich is currently tied with Trump. Such is the urgency of the “Stop Trump” effort that Rubio’s campaign took the astonishing step of asking Republican voters opposed to the real estate magnate to vote for Kasich. If that strategy fails, and Trump wins both Florida and Ohio, then many think he becomes mathematically almost impossible to stop. The Democrats also have contests, but arguably today’s not quite such a significant moment for them. Polls suggest Hillary Clinton has a big lead in Florida, although Bernie Sanders is a bit more competitive in Ohio.

Trump Rubio