5 State Primary: Trump & Clinton lead on Super Tuesday with 3 wins each

Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton secured the highest number of delegates of the night with wins in Florida, North Carolina and Ohio. In the Republican race front-runner Donald Trump lost significant delegates to Ohio's governor, John Kasich.

Florida results

GOP front runner Donald Trump won 45.8 percent of the vote in Florida, with Marco Rubio scoring 27 percent in his own state, the Wall Street journal reported after all the Republican poll centers had submitted their results.

Hillary Clinton won 64.5 percent of the Florida Democratic vote, with Bernie Sanders claiming 33.3 percent of the ballots.

RT’s Ed Schultz is joined by Florida Congressman Alan Grayson (D) to talk about Clinton's victories in the Sunshine state and Trump's success.

Voters also cast ballots in Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina. Turnout was reported to be high in a number of areas, including Missouri, Ohio and the Chicago suburbs of Illinois.

Trump also won all nine of the delegates in the Northern Mariana Islands' winner-take-all GOP caucus.

Earlier on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke with Trump, urging him to discourage violence at his rallies. McConnell did not disclose Trump's response. Conservative talk show host Michael Medved and Sirius XM Satellite Radio Host Joe Madison join RT America's Ed Schultz to break it down.

Trump won all of the state's 99 delegates and dealt a knockout blow to Senator Marco Rubio in his home state, causing the latter to suspend his campaign. 

Rubio said “I want to congratulate Donald Trump…people are very frustrated about the direction of our country.”

"We are on the right side," Rubio said, "but not the winning side."

RT's Marina Portanaya discusses with Ed Schultz whether with Rubio dropping out of the race will he now back probable GOP nominee Trump, after running a campaign criticizing him for being a con man, and even running a Stop Trump Campaign. 

At her victory speech on Tuesday, Clinton thanked supporters.

"We are moving closer to securing the Democratic party nomination, and winning this election in November,” she said to rousing cheers in West Palm Beach, Florida. “Our campaign has won more delegates than any other candidate, Democrat or Republican.”

During his victory speech Trump said it "was an amazing evening."

“This was a great evening. They have just announced North Carolina. We are leading by a lot (in Illinois),” said Trump at his headquarters at Mar-a-Lago Club, Forida.

“Very interesting poll results. …The Economist said (I’m leading) by 53 percent,” said Trump.

“If I win…Apple, all these great companies, will be making their products in the United States,” said Trump. “All of these great companies…Pfizer is going to Ireland.” 

Illinois results

Trump got the win in Illinois, taking 38.8 percent of the vote, with over 98.8 percent of the precincts reporting, despite recently canceling a Chicago rally due to security concerns.

Senator Ted Cruz settled for 29 percent of the vote in the Prairie State, with John Kasich coming in third on 19.7 percent.

It was even closer in the Democratic primaries as less than two percent separated Clinton (50.5 percent) and Sanders (48.7 percent).

North Carolina results

Democratic candidate Clinton won the primary in North Carolina with 54.6 percent of the vote. Sanders had to settle for 40.8 percent of the ballots. 

Trump was on top in North Carolina as he won 40.2 percent to narrowly beat Ted Cruz, who bagged 36.8 percent of the vote.    

Missouri

It was super tight in Missouri for both Republican and Democratic candidates, with questions of a possible recount raised in both races.
In the Republican vote, Trump’s lead over Cruz was just 0.2 percent after 99.9 percent of poll centers reported. The candidates claimed 40.8 and 40.6 percent, respectively.

The gap in the Democratic primaries was also just 0.2 percent - Clinton took 49.6 percent and Sanders 49.4 percent of the vote.

According to the law, a candidate, who loses by less than half of a percent of all votes, is eligible to seek a recount.

Ohio results

Ohio Governor Kasich deprived Trump of his super-sweep by winning the Republican primaries in the home state.

Kasich claimed his first victory of the 2016 White House campaign on 46.8 percent. Trump was second with 35.7 percent of the vote.

Ohio Governor Kasich gave his victory speech surrounding by his family.

“I will not take the low road to the highest office in the land,” said Kasich taking a swipe at Trump. “We are going all the way to Cleveland to secure the nomination.”

RT’s Ed Schultz is joined by Congressman Tim Ryan and Nina Turner to discuss the future of the Democratic campaigns. He talks about Kasich's sweeping win, and Sanders' disappointing loss.

The result also gave Trump his first defeat of the night with 34 percent of the vote, according to The New York Times.

In the third big win of the night, Clinton wins the Democratic primary in Ohio, winning 66 percent of the vote, with only 3 percent of precincts reporting, according to AP.

Democratic candidate Clinton won in Ohio with 56.5 percent, again leaving Sanders behind as he got 42.7 percent of the vote.

Following Tuesday’s primaries, Donald Trump has 621 delegates in the bag, with 1,237 delegates needed to clinch the nomination. His nearest rival – Ted Cruz – has the support of 396 candidates.

In the Democratic race, Hillary Clinton (1,561) now enjoys almost a twofold advantage over Bernie Sanders (800 delegates). The support of 2,383 delegates is required for the nomination.

Florida

One of the big victory primaries for delegates. Democratic candidates are vying for the lion share of 214 delegate votes and Republicans for 99 delegate votes. Both primaries are closed which means only party registered votes can poll for candidates.

Rubio’s wife helped out at campaign HQ in Miami

Google Trends had Sanders leading in the primary

There were a small number of voter complaints in south Florida town when Trump’s name was missing from the ballot.

Even the candidate himself weighed in

Election Protection, a voter hotline, said they had received more than 200 calls from confused and disenfranchised voters in Florida. Many of the calls were from voter who did not know they had to be registered as either a Republican or a Democrat to participate in the closed primary, or who reported records of their registration were incorrect.

“A number of voters thought they were registered with a party, or wanted to be able to vote even though they’re not registered with that party,” Rosemarie Clouston with the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law who established the voter hotline told ThinkProgress. “These folks were confused, upset, and disappointed they couldn’t vote today.”

There were other problems reported across the Sunshine State. A bomb threat shut down a polling place in Broward County for nearly two hours. In the city of Apopka, outside of Orlando, two polling places ran out of both Republican and Democratic ballots and began turning voters away.
It was the state of Florida that was ridiculed worldwide after election problems during the 2000 presidential recount. 

Illinois

The former president appeared with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle outside a polling place on Chicago's South Side Tuesday morning, according to NBC.

"I want to help stir up voter interest, get the biggest possible turnout," Clinton said after shaking hands and posing for photos outside Beulah Shoesmith Elementary School in the Hyde Park neighborhood, according to NBC News.

When asked about Sanders' apparent surge in Illinois polls, Clinton made a distinction between the two candidates for the Democratic nomination.

 "This should be a race for president. There is a blame candidate and a responsibility candidate in this race. I'm betting the responsibility candidate will win," said Clinton

The former President also made a stop earlier in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side, greeting young chidren and voters flanked by Congressman Danny K. Davis as well as Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

"It’s a big election and you know there’s been a lot of activity, so I just wanted to be here on Election Day," he said.

“Chicago has been really good to me and our family", he added. "I love coming here and I thought it would the best place to be on Election Day.”

Senator Sanders (Vermont) was accompanied by Cook County Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor against Rahm Emanuel last year. Part of Sanders’s strategy in Illinois has been mobilizing those disappointed with the tenure of Emanuel, a Clinton ally whose approval ratings have dropped to all-time lows.

Missouri

An 87-year-old retiree from St. Charles, Missouri told AP he cast his vote for Trump and his first vote for a Republican. He has voted for Democrats since the  Harry Truman administration.

“I think the man is well qualified for the simple reason that he he’s got a lot of money. Nobody’s pushing him,” said Norman Hagan. “He’s well acquainted with different types of businesses. This country is a business, and I think he’d be well qualified to run it.”

Hagan said he had serious concerns about the democrats, “Hillary in particular.”

Sanders is aiming for victory in Missouri, and hopeful about wins in Illinois and Ohio.

North Carolina

In North Carolina, where a controversial new voter identification law was in use for the first time, voting rights advocates were on alert for problems.

A spokeswoman for the North Carolina State Board of Elections told The Washington Post late in the day that primaries were running smoothly.

A student at North Carolina State University, Elijah Morgan, is not a registered Democrat or Republican but he voted for Rubio.

“I don’t love him as much as I’d like to. You know, like, if the bar for candidate that I’d like to vote for is here, Rubio’s here and everybody else is much below that,” said Morgan, 21, an electric engineering student. He said he is hoping for a contested GOP convention this summer.

“I would prefer that outcome over Cruz or Trump. I really don’t like Cruz. I think he’s dishonest. Smarmy, kind of…I think that (Trump) stands for everything I stand against,” he added.

Campaigning at a North Carolina polling place at midday, Clinton urged her supporters to come out to vote, despite polls showing her leading in a number of races, according to the Washington Post.

Ohio

In Ohio, Republican presidential candidate Ohio governor John Kasich cast his vote. Kasich was leading in the polls in Ohio.

“Where I came from, we always hear about these stories, but the stories could be about you, too. This one just happens to be about me,” said Ohio Governor, Kasich (R). “To have started here as an aid, going all the way back to Nixon, all the way back to church, all the way back to my family, and then to come in here today and cast a vote for yourself for President of the United States …it is pretty remarkable.”

Ohio voter William McMillen told AP he voted for Trump today because Trump is a "businessman" who "could make money" for the country. Trump's abandonment of his party's free-trade policies is resonating with voters across the industrial Midwest.

During a campaign stop in Ohio today, Sanders said Clinton "stood with the big money interests," while he stood with "the working people of this country," according to AP

Earlier in the day, police in Cleveland arrested an armed poll worker.  The man got into an argument with a fellow poll workers and pulled out a .380 pistol out of his backpack, according to Cleveland police.  He didn’t point the gun at anyone, but verbally threatened people.

Cleveland police spokeswoman, Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said the man faces charges of aggravated menacing, carrying a concealed weapon and having weapons under a disability, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer.  The man also faces a marijuana possession charge as police found a small amount of the drug in his pocket when he was arrested. He was not formally charged yet.

There were no injuries reported but officials have not said whether the incident disrupted voting as the man was taken into custody.

"We want to assure everybody that voting is being conducted as usual," he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "It's safe to go and vote."

The Board of Elections released a statement later in the afternoon saying the worker was fired.

This marks the first presidential election without the full protection of the Voting Rights Act. The act passed on August 6, 1965 under President Lyndon Johnson was a landmark piece of federal legislation which prohibited racial discrimination in voting.

In 2013, the Supreme Court struck down crucial components of the act in a case called Shelby County v. Holder, when it ruled that states with histories of voting-related racial discrimination no longer had to "pre-clear" changes to their voting laws with the federal government. Immediately following the Shelby ruling, 16 states passed laws that made it harder for people to vote including Alabama, Texas and Virginia.