LAS VEGAS: Donald Trump won Republican presidential nominating caucuses in Nevada and the US Virgin Islands, moving closer to becoming his party’s White House standard-bearer in a likely general election rematch with US President Joe Biden in November.

Trump, the frontrunner in his party’s nominating race, was the only major candidate competing in Nevada’s caucuses and was set to win the state’s 26 delegates to the party’s nominating convention in July after being projected the winner on Thursday night by Edison Research.

The former US president earlier easily won the US Virgin Islands caucuses, adding four to his delegate haul. He won 182 votes, or 74 per cent of the 246 votes cast there, beating his last remaining rival in the Republican race, Nikki Haley, who won 26pc support with 64 votes.

The Nevada caucuses, organised by the Trump-friendly Nevada Republican Party, came two days after a state-run primary election, which saw a humiliating defeat for Haley.

Speaking to reporters before he left Florida for Nevada, Trump called the Colorado case “more election interference by the Democrats.”

After his win, Trump appeared before supporters in Las Vegas. “I want to thank the great people of Nevada,” he said to cheers.

Trump is close to winning the Republican nomination after back-to-back wins in Iowa and New Hampshire last month.

Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2024