Clinton, Trump win big in Pa.
HARRISBURG — Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton came away big winners in Pennsylvania's presidential primaries Tuesday.
On a day where more than 3 million people voted, Trump received support across the demographic spectrum, winning a majority of Republican men and women, a majority of voters at all income levels and voters from cities, suburbs and rural areas, according to results from an exit poll conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research.
Speaking in New York, Trump declared the GOP primary stakes “over,” while Clinton, speaking in Philadelphia, urged Democrats to unify against a Republican candidate who would “pit Americans against each other.”
Clinton prevailed with majorities among voters 45 and older, as well as with women, black voters and those looking for an experienced candidate who can win in November, but lost millennials to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Clinton also turned in a solid performance in Philadelphia and its suburbs, where two in five Democrats live.
With almost all precincts reporting, Trump won every Pennsylvania county. He netted 57 percent to 22 percent for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and 19 percent for Ohio Gov. John Kasich.
Clinton had 56 percent to 44 percent for Sanders. More than 3 million ballots were cast, but Pennsylvania did not break a primary turnout record.
Clinton now has 2,141, or 90 percent of the 2,383 delegates needed to win the nomination. Sanders has 1,321. With 950 delegates, Trump has 77 percent of the delegates needed to win the nomination. He has to win slightly more than half of the remaining delegates to get there.
The Republican race now turns to Indiana, where next week's primary marks one of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's last chances to slow Trump and push the race toward a contested convention. While Trump does need to keep winning to stay on his narrow path to the GOP nomination, he declared himself the party's “presumptive nominee” after Tuesday's results rolled in.
“It's over. As far as I'm concerned it's over,” he declared. The real estate mogul now has 77 percent of the delegates he needs.
Trump was headed to Indiana Wednesday after delivering a foreign policy speech in Washington. The address at a downtown hotel is the first in a series of speeches the Republican front-runner is expected to give in the coming weeks, all with the goal of easing Americans' concerns about his readiness for the presidency.
Likewise, Clinton was eager to turn her attention to Trump. While Clinton advisers say they won't underestimate Trump, as many of his vanquished Republican rivals did, her campaign sees opportunities to not only energize Democrats in an effort to keep him out of the White House but also appeal to Republicans turned off by the brash billionaire.
“If you are a Democrat, an independent or a thoughtful Republican, you know that their approach is not going to build an America where we increase opportunity or decrease inequality,” Clinton said of the GOP candidates.
In addition to Pennsylvania, Trump's victories came in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland and Rhode Island. Clinton ceded only Rhode Island to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Sanders, in an interview with The Associated Press, conceded he has a “very narrow path and we're going to have to win some big victories.”
In the Republican race, Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich are desperately trying to force a convention fight. The challengers have even taken the rare step of announcing plans to coordinate in upcoming contests to try to minimize Trump's delegate totals.
