Hillary Clinton wins South Carolina primary, easily defeating Bernie Sanders

Hillary Clinton sailed to a resounding victory in the South Carolina primary on Saturday, easily besting her rival Bernie Sanders in their latest clash in the Democratic presidential campaign.

Clinton’s win was declared the instant the polls closed. Sanders quickly conceded defeat.

The victory was widely predicted; Clinton had been leading in polls by double digits in the days leading up to the primary. She celebrated at a rowdy victory rally in the state.

“In America, when we stand together there is no barrier too big to break,” she said.

The victory represented a nearly decade-long reversal of fortune for Clinton. Her previous effort to win South Carolina in 2008 met with disaster as voters spurned her for Barack Obama and punished her for a series of racially charged comments from herself and Bill Clinton.

This time, though, the overwhelmingly black electorate of the South Carolina primary stuck with her.

For Sanders, South Carolina represents another setback, though he retains a significant base of support within the party and the resources to continue his campaign for a good while longer. He made strenuous efforts to chip away at Clinton’s base of support in the state, but came up short. Sanders spent Saturday in Texas and Minnesota, two of the states holding primaries on Super Tuesday.

Both Clinton and Sanders referenced the upcoming battles.

“In just three days, Democrats in 11 states, will pick 10 times more pledged delegates on one day than were selected in the four early states so far in this campaign,” Sanders said in a statement. “Our grassroots political revolution is growing state by state, and we won’t stop now.”

Clinton sounded a similar note.

“Tomorrow, this campaign goes national,” she said at her victory rally. “We are going to compete for every vote in every state. We’re not taking anything and we’re not taking anyone for granted.”