Voters in 15 states, including two powerhouses, California and Texas, will go to the polls today for Super Tuesday, which is expected to set up a White House rematch in November between President Biden and former President Donald J. Trump.
The primary battle will also decide the outlines of House and Senate elections that will shape the legislative branch for the next year.
On Super Tuesday, Donald Trump has already notched a major purple state primary victory: Virginia.
The state race was closely watched to see how close Nikki Haley, the last GOP presidential candidate in the primary race besides Trump, would fare.
To wit: Not good.
The New York Times estimates that Donald Trump will win by 27 points.
However, the largest troves of delegates — 169 in California and 161 in Texas — are practically guaranteed to go to the former president, and Super Tuesday has loomed large for Haley’s funders, who want to see if she has a shot. On Tuesday, more than one-third of all delegates will be allocated, which is insufficient to make Trump the presumptive nominee but enough to make him the prohibitive favorite.
Haley will then have to make a difficult decision: should she drop out and back Trump, drop out and postpone any endorsement, continue in the campaign until her money runs out, or contemplate running as a third party? (She has stated that she will not participate, but the centrist organization No Labels remains hopeful that she may join its ticket.)
After winning the New Hampshire primary in January, Trump criticized Haley’s clothing and chastised her for trying to capitalize on her 43 percent second-place result. He made no mention of Haley following his victory in her home state of South Carolina last month.
Trump has made no secret of his desire to launch a general election campaign against Biden, as well as his frustration with Haley’s obstinate insurgency, which has included harsh criticism of her former boss’s intemperance, age, fealty to the Constitution, and loyalty to veterans and active-duty military personnel.
It could be all-but-over for Haley’s race tonight, even if she refuses to acknowledge it.
Haley’s decision will be based on just how much money Eric Hoffman and his ilk will continue to put into the campaign. It has nothing to do with politics. It has a lot to do with greed.