Donald Trump easily won the Republican primaries in West Virginia and Nebraska after all of his opponents in the GOP primary exited the presidential race.
Trump was heavily favored to win both West Virginia and Nebraska going away, despite his low favorability rating nationwide. Earlier this month, Trump told West Virginians he believed the GOP primary was “rigged” but he no longer cared. He told the crowd not to bother voting in the primary and asked that West Virginians instead “save your vote for the general election in November.”
In Nebraska, Trump has faced opposition in the form of freshman GOP Sen. Ben Sasse, whose name has been floated as a conservative independent candidate for president.
Sasse has previously stated his intention to support a third-party candidate if Trump earns the Republican nomination, and voted early for Ted Cruz. Early voting may have contributed to Texas senator’s vote total in Nebraska, where he was expected to do well before quitting.
Trump was on track to win Nebraska with more than 60 percent of the vote and West Virginia with better than 75 percent.
“It is a great honor to have won both West Virginia and Nebraska, especially by such massive margins,” Trump said in a statement after the results came in. “My time spent in both states was a wonderful and enlightening experience for me.”
The billionaire said he “learned a lot” in both states and would apply this new knowledge to creating jobs and “reviving” their economies.
“I look forward to returning to West Virginia and Nebraska soon, and hope to win both states in the general election,” Trump added. “Likewise, my time spent last week with the great people of Oregon will hopefully lead to another victory next Tuesday.”
Trump’s projected delegate count has yet to eclipse the 1,237 delegate threshold he needs to secure the nomination in Cleveland. The exit of the other major candidates has given him a clearer path to reaching a majority.
