US primaries

Warning shot for Biden, next victory for Trump

Donald Trump in Michigan(Bild: AP)

Donald Trump is rushing from one victory to the next in the US primaries. This time, the Republican presidential candidate triumphed in the state of Michigan. According to forecasts, Trump was a good 40 percentage points ahead of his rival Nikki Haley with 67% after around 40% of the votes had been counted. Among the Democrats, on the other hand, incumbent Joe Biden won.

However, Biden had to take a warning shot. Despite the lack of competition, he only received 80 percent of the vote. Around 20,000 Democrats voted "undecided" in each of the past three Democratic primaries in Michigan. On Tuesday, with only 41 percent of the votes counted, the number was already around 50,000. Before the election, several groups had called for people to vote "undecided" in protest against Biden's policies in the Middle East. They are calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza war and an end to US military aid to Israel.

President Joe Biden has been criticized for his Middle East policy. This is also making itself felt in the primaries.(Bild: AP)

But it is not only Muslims who are likely to have denied Biden their vote in Michigan. Younger, progressive Democrats are also criticizing the president in view of the many civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.

Donald Trump in Michigan(Bild: AP)

This could become a problem for Trump
Trump's ratings were considerably better. He kept his internal party rival at a distance. The question will be how many of these Haley supporters will end up voting for Trump in the presidential election in November. Some of them are not ruling out voting for Biden in order to prevent a second Trump term. This is unlikely to apply to the majority of Haley supporters. But if this group does not go to the polls or supports a third, independent candidate, this could become a major problem for Trump. 

Now comes "Super Tuesday"
Special attention is now being paid to March 5, the so-called Super Tuesday. On this day, Republican primaries will be held simultaneously in 15 states. In an interview with CNN on Tuesday evening, Haley made it clear that he wanted to stay in the race at least until Super Tuesday.