Trump’s South Carolina Victory Tells Us Some Important Things About His Weaknesses
SlateAnother Republican primary is in the books, and it looks much like every other contest we’ve seen so far. Media organizations projected that Donald Trump would win South Carolina within seconds of polls closing on Saturday, and Trump delivered his victory speech just minutes after that. Looked at one way, Trump made history, becoming the first non-incumbent Republican candidate to sweep the first four early states, with comfortable victories in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina. Those identifying as Republicans made up 68 percent of the South Carolina primary electorate, per exit polls, and Trump won 70 percent of them. While Trump came fairly close to hitting his projected vote share, Haley’s support was underestimated, suggesting that her rigorous campaigning over the past month was effective on the margins.