Clinton cruises to big win over Sanders in South Carolina

Clinton made a stop in Alabama, a Super Tuesday state, on Saturday before returning to Columbia, South Carolina’s capital, for an evening victory party.

Clinton won black voters five-to-one in SC, the New York Times reported, which pundits said may be an indication of how she’ll do with African-American voters in southern states on Super Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Hillary Clinton won the support of an overwhelming majority of black voters, large majorities of men and women, and even a majority of voters under 45 on her way to a claiming a commanding victory in South Carolina’s Democratic primary Saturday.

SC was considered significant for Clinton after her win in the Nevada caucus on February 20, partially because of her loss to President Barack Obama there by 28 points during the 2008 campaign.

The result in SC establishes Mrs Clinton’s strength among black voters, a crucial Democratic constituency who make up more than half the party’s primary electorate in SC.

More than 4 in 10 SC primary voters said the economy is the most important issue, more than in any other state so far. “Sanders on running a great race, and tomorrow, this campaign goes national”.

“Let me be clear on one thing tonight”.

Clinton hopes a second chance in SC will mean a first. But the totals are not expected to reach the numbers during the last contested Democratic presidential primary eight years ago. And that the delegates will be allocated proportionately, meaning that if Clinton runs up the margins, she runs up the delegates, too.

Democrats will vote in 11 states and American Samoa, with 865 delegates up for grabs on Super Tuesday. During the 2008 South Carolina Democratic primary, 55 percent of the voters were black, while 43 percent were white, NBC said.

After the win, Clinton appeared to be looking ahead to a general-election matchup with Republican front-runner Donald Trump, the billionaire whose campaign slogan is “Make America Great Again” and has called for building a wall on the border with Mexico.

Clinton’s sweeping victory suggested SC voters had put aside any lingering tensions from her heated 2008 contest with Obama.

Still, the Palmetto State victory is an important one for Clinton and gives her a boost of momentum heading into Super Tuesday.

Among early voters, Alicia Newman, a 31-year-old elementary school teacher from Greenville, said she was torn but ultimately went for Clinton. His campaign has already moved beyond South Carolina – Sanders was in the air as polls closed, en route to a rally in Minnesota where he was to speak Saturday night. That’s according to exit polls.