Trump and Biden Win 2024 Presidential Nominations

Updated March 13, 2024, 10:30 a.m. EST

• President Biden and former President Trump have secured the required delegates to be their respective party's nominees for the general election, guaranteeing a rematch between the two in the fall. 
• Tuesday, March 12, consisted of multiple primary elections, bringing home the win for both candidates. 
• In response to the win, Biden said:

"Amid [our] progress, we face a sobering reality: Freedom and democracy are at risk here at home in a way they have not been since the Civil War. Donald Trump is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America."

• Similarly, Trump said: 

"It is my great honor to be representing the Republican Party as its Presidential Nominee. Our Party is UNITED and STRONG, and fully understands that we are running against the Worst, Most Incompetent, Corrupt, and Destructive President in the History of the United States."

Last night was the New Hampshire primary, which brought victories to GOP front-runner Donald Trump and President Joe Biden, despite not being on the printed ballot. 

The results

• Trump beat Nikki Haley by a significant margin of 11 points. The former president is the first Republican presidential candidate who is not a White House incumbent to win the nation’s first two presidential contents – the Iowa Caucus and New Hampshire primaries. 
• Biden won as a write-in candidate in the Democratic primary, beating Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.). The Democratic National Committee chose South Carolina to hold its first primary of the year on Feb. 3, taking Biden off the New Hampshire ballot. But, a grassroots campaign urged Democrats to write in his name, achieving a win more symbolic than anything for Biden. The results won’t count toward Biden’s official nomination, and New Hampshire delegates won’t be at the Democratic National Convention as a result. 

Moving forward

• Despite Trump’s success, he did not secure key groups of swing voters. Haley won over voters who identify as moderates and independents, also beating Trump among those who have a college degree.
• About half of New Hampshire’s Republican primary voters stated feeling very or somewhat concerned that Trump is too extreme to win the general election, according to AP Vote Cast. 
• Haley’s loss represents a defeat for anti-Trump GOP forces. Nevertheless, Haley said:

“New Hampshire is the first in the nation; it is not the last in the nation. This race is far from over. There are dozens of states left to go. And the next one is my sweet state of South Carolina.”

• In response to his write-in win, Biden gave thanks to “all those who wrote [his] name in…It was a historic demonstration of commitment to our democratic process.” He continued:

“It is now clear that Donald Trump will be the Republican nominee. And my message to the country is the stakes could not be higher.”

How do you feel about another Trump-Biden showdown?

-Jamie Epstein