Super Tuesday 2024 saw Trump and Biden mop up delegates across the country. But each man faced an upset loss, Biden in American Samoa, and Trump in Vermont.
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump dominated Super Tuesday's primary contests from coast to coast, each winning hundreds of delegates and moving much closer to clinching their respective parties' nominations.
Biden walked away from the night with at least 1,424 delegates, slightly more than 72% of the total he needs to secure the Democratic nomination.
Trump ended the day with a minimum of 946 delegates, or 78% of the 1,215 total he requires in order to formally become the Republican party's presumptive nominee.
Yet amid their victorious romps through states like California, Maine and Arkansas, both men lost unexpected contests that highlighted potential obstacles to uniting their parties' most loyal voters behind them.
Biden lost American Samoa's Democratic caucus to political newcomer Jason Palmer, an entrepreneur who has never set foot on the South Pacific islands that make the U.S. territory. Only 91 total votes were cast in the caucus, and Palmer won 50 of them. Biden came away with 41.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley also scored an upset victory over Trump in Vermont's Republican primary, winning 50% of the vote, while Trump secured just 45%.
Haley will drop out of the 2024 presidential race Wednesday, a source familiar with her plans confirmed to NBC News.
Haley won't announce an endorsement Wednesday, two people told NBC News. Instead, she will encourage Trump to earn the support of Republicans and independent voters who backed her, one of the sources said.
Live: NBC News Super Tuesday 2024 Primary Election Results
Below are NBC's projections for the presidential primary and caucus winners, as of 1:00 a.m. ET Wednesday.
In addition to the presidential race, several down ballot contests Tuesday were closely watched.
None more so than California's Senate primary, where Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey won the top two spots in a race to fill the seat vacated by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein.
California is a deep blue state, so Tuesday's results were especially promising for Schiff. In November, the Trump antagonist will be the only Democrat on the ballot in a state that has not elected a Republican to the U.S. Senate since the 1960's.
Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff will win California's Senate primary race, followed by Republican former MLB star Steve Garvey, NBC News projects.
The projected result means Schiff and Garvey will advance to the general election to compete for the Senate seat formerly held by Dianne Feinstein.
Schiff and Garvey defeated a large field of challengers in California's "jungle primary" race, where the top two finishers advance, regardless of party affiliation. Among them were Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, who both campaigned on progressive platforms.
alifornia is a deep blue state, so Tuesday's results portend especially well for Schiff, who is now the only Democrat in the race.
President Joe Biden won California in 2020 by nearly 30 points over Donald Trump. The last Republican presidential candidate to win California was George H.W. Bush, in 1988.
— Kevin Breuninger
The California Senate primary result is too close to call, NBC projected shortly after polls in the state closed at 11 p.m. ET.
California has an all-party "jungle" primary system, in which the top two candidates, regardless of party, move ahead to the general election.
— Kevin Breuninger
Donald Trump will win California's Republican presidential primary, moving him one large step closer to clinching the GOP nomination, NBC News projects.
The call came shortly after polls closed at 11 p.m. ET. Trump was widely expected to defeat Nikki Haley in the California primary and win all 169 of its available delegates.
The Golden State carries the biggest delegate bounty of the 15 states holding primary elections on Super Tuesday, where 865 GOP delegates are up for grabs.
Trump came into the week with 276 delegates. He needs 1,215 to secure the Republican presidential nomination.
— Kevin Breuninger
President Joe Biden will win California's Democratic primary, NBC News projects.
The call came moments after polls closed in the state at 11 p.m. ET. There are 424 pledged delegates up for grabs in the state's Democratic primary, more than in any other Super Tuesday race.
Biden was widely expected to easily trounce his few long-shot primary challengers in the Golden State and the remaining contests on the road to the Democratic presidential nomination.
— Kevin Breuninger
In a grim Super Tuesday victory speech, Donald Trump portrayed America under President Joe Biden as a country on the brink of death. And he blamed migrants for many of the nation's woes.
"Our cities are choking to death. Our states are dying. And frankly, our country is dying," Trump claimed in a dark, apocalyptic 18-minute speech at his Florida resort home Mar-a-Lago.
A few hundred of his friends and supporters had gathered to celebrate his primary wins.
Trump alleged that Biden and his allies "want open borders, and open borders are going to destroy our country."
"Our cities are being overrun with migrant crime, and that's Biden migrant crime," Trump claimed.
There is paltry evidence for Trump's accusations. According to an NBC News analysis of 2024 crime data, the U.S. cities that have received the most migrants have experienced decreasing overall crime levels.
"In some ways we're a third-world country," Trump said elsewhere in the speech, singling out the border and elections.
Trump for years has falsely claimed that his loss to Biden in the 2020 election was rigged through widespread voter fraud. He continues to falsely claim he won that election.
— Kevin Breuninger
Democratic Texas Rep. Colin Allred will face Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in November, NBC News projects.
Allred is the latest Democrat to try to unseat Cruz, who has been in the Senate since 2013. Former Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke tried but failed to beat Cruz during the 2018 election.
- Brian Schwartz
The longshot Democratic challenger to beat President Joe Biden in a Super Tuesday contest was not a Minnesota congressman nor a self-help author.
It was Jason Palmer, a Baltimore-based venture capitalist.
Palmer took 56% of the vote in American Samoa's Democratic caucus, which is 51 out of the U.S. territory's total 91 votes cast.
"Honored to announce my victory in the American Samoa presidential primary. Thank you to the incredible community for your support," Palmer wrote on X Tuesday night. "This win is a testament to the power of our voices. Together, we can rebuild the American Dream and shape a brighter future for all."
Palmer has worked at Microsoft and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, according to his campaign website.
Palmer built his campaign platform on boosting small businesses and using his entrepreneurial, capitalist background to "to transform the federal government to run more like a high-tech, highly-efficient, well-respected business that puts its customers' needs first."
— Rebecca Picciotto
Nikki Haley is projected by NBC News to win the Republican presidential primary in Vermont.
Haley's projected victory comes two days after her first primary victory, in the District of Columbia
The former South Carolina governor is the only serious challenger to ex-President Donald Trump in the GOP presidential nomination contest. Haley served as the United States ambassador to the United Nations during the Trump administration.
Vermont has an open primary system, which allows people to vote in the party primary of their choice, regardless of their political affiliation.
Paul Somerset, a Democrat from Montpelier who owns a property management company, told NBC News, "I voted Republican for the first time in my life because I wanted to vote for Nikki Haley because I would like to see her beat or at least be strong enough to make Trump look weak."
"This is an anti-Trump vote," said Somerset. "I'm not voting for Haley."
Somerset, who was one of several Democrats to describe strategically voting for Haley to thwart Trump in the primary, called the former president's bid to return to the White House "the most dangerous thing I've seen since I've been voting in 1978."
"It scares the hell out of me," he said.
Vermont has three votes in the Electoral College.
The last Republican presidential nominee to win Vermont in the national election was former President George H.W. Bush, in 1988.
- Dan Mangan
President Joe Biden warned that Donald Trump "is determined to destroy our democracy" as he said Super Tuesday's results leave American voters "with a clear choice" between him and the Republican former president.
"Are we going to keep moving forward or will we allow Donald Trump to drag us backwards into the chaos, division, and darkness that defined his term in office?" Biden asked in a statement.
"Four years ago, I ran because of the existential threat Donald Trump posed to the America we all believe in," Biden said. "Since then, we've made enormous progress: 15 million jobs, wages rising faster than inflation, taking on Big Pharma and the gun lobby — and winning. But we have more to do."
If Trump is returned to the White House, "all of this progress is at risk," said Biden.
"He is driven by grievance and grift, focused on his own revenge and retribution, not the American people" said the president.
"He is determined to destroy our democracy, rip away fundamental freedoms like the ability for women to make their own health care decisions, and pass another round of billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy — and he'll do or say anything to put himself in power."
- Dan Mangan
President Joe Biden will lose the Democratic caucus in American Samoa to little-known candidate Jason Palmer, NBC News projects.
Palmer's victory is a striking outcome for Biden, who has tallied up win after win Tuesday night.
American Samoa, a U.S. territory, only held a Democratic caucus.
— Rebecca Picciotto
President Joe Biden will win the Democratic primary in Utah, NBC News projects.
Thirty delegates are at stake in the primary.
Susan Cissoko, 35, told NBC 5 that she was voting for Biden because of his support for student loan debt relief, his stance on social services, and because of the ethnic makeup of the Democratic party.
"Although I don't 100% agree with Biden, he aligns more with my perspective and views over [Donald] Trump and the Republican Party," Cissoko told the television station while dropping off her mail-in ballot in Provo.
Utah has six votes in the Electoral College, which determines the winner of the presidential election after the popular vote in November.
Republicans hold a nearly 4-to-1 edge over Democrats in registered voters in Utah.
The state has voted for a Democratic presidential nominee in the national election just once since 1952.
President Lyndon Johnson won Utah in 1964, when the Democrat garnered 61% of the national vote, the largest percentage of a U.S. presidential candidate since 1820.
- Dan Mangan
President Joe Biden won the Minnesota Democratic primary, NBC News projects.
The victory extends Biden's lead in the primary over his rivals that have included Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn.
Biden's wins on Tuesday give him momentum as he faces a tough general election fight against Donald Trump.
- Brian Schwartz
Trump will win Colorado's Republican presidential primary, NBC News projects, a day after the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously reversed the state's ruling to remove the former president from the ballot.
He lost the state to Biden by 55.4% to 41.9% in the 2020 election.
Trump once again defeated challenger Nikki Haley, picking up more Republican delegates on the way to the 1,215 needed to win the nomination.
In December, Colorado's Supreme Court blocked Trump from the ballot in a primary election for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection against the U.S. Capitol. U.S. Supreme Court justices ruled Monday that no state can ban a presidential candidate by invoking the insurrection clause of the Constitution.
—Chelsey Cox
Donald Trump has won the Minnesota Republican primary, NBC News projects.
- Brian Schwartz
President Joe Biden will win the Democratic primary in Colorado, NBC News projects, defeating challengers Marianne Williamson, who jumped back into the race last week after suspending her campaign, and Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn.
The president won the state during the 2020 election, 55.4% to 41.9% over former President Donald Trump.
Winning the lion's share of Colorado's 72 delegates will move Biden steadily closer to the 1,968 delegates he needs to win the Democratic nomination.
—Chelsey Cox
Donald Trump has won the Massachusetts Republican primary, NBC News projects.
Some people who voted for Trump over Nikki Haley said they don't believe she has a chance to win the general election.
"I don't think she can win. So I don't think the Massachusetts primary is going to make a ton of difference because the state isn't gonna go for Trump so it's moot. It would be more interesting if we were in Wisconsin," Jim Kan, a Massachusetts voter who chose Trump over Haley, told NBC News.
- Brian Schwartz
Donald Trump is projected by NBC News to win the Texas Republican presidential primary.
There were 161 delegates at stake in the GOP primary.
The former president Trump has twice won Texas in the national presidential election.
In 2016, when he won the White House, Trump defeated Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by 52.5% to 43.5% in Texas.
Four years later, Trump bested President Joe Biden by 52.1% to 46.5%.
- Dan Mangan
President Joe Biden will win the Democratic primary in Texas, NBC News projects.
There were 244 delegates at stake in the Democratic primary
Jimmy Carter was the last Democratic presidential nominee to win in Texas, doing so in 1976 when he was elected to the White House.
- Dan Mangan
Rep. Jeff Jackson will win North Carolina's Democratic primary in the attorney general's race, NBC News projects.
In November, Jackson will face off against Rep. Dan Bishop, a Republican hardliner, who won the GOP attorney general primary on Tuesday after being the only Republican contender in the field.
Jackson threw his hat in the ring after North Carolina redrew its congressional map, which effectively turned his purple district red. Attorney Tim Dunn and Durham County District Attorney Satana Deberry were also in the Democratic field.
— Rebecca Picciotto
President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and former Republican President Donald Trump are projected by NBC News to win their respective political parties' primaries in Arkansas.
There were 31 delegates at stake in the Democratic primary.
There were 40 delegates in the Republican primary.
Former President Bill Clinton, who had served as governor of Arkansas, is the last Democrat to have won the state in the national presidential election. Clinton won his home state in both the 1992 and 1996 presidential contests.
Arkansas has six votes in the Electoral College.
- Dan Mangan