Donald Trump has scooped a win in the New Hampshire Republican primary, setting the stage for a potential rematch with Democrat Joe Biden.
His main competitor, Nikki Haley, came in second with 43.1% of the votes compared to Trump's 54.6%. Joe Biden won on the Democratic side as a write-in candidate, despite not being on the ballot.
This was a night full of drama, marking the first time a presidential candidate has won the first two contests on the primary nomination calendar and failed to become the party's general election nominee. Here are five key moments from the night.
Trump is now expected to clinch the Republican nomination, grabbing the 22 delegates available from New Hampshire. Usually, the winner of both the Iowa caucus and the New Hampshire Primary is always able to get the nomination.
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Republican presidential hopeful Trump speaks during an Election Night Party in Nashua, New Hampshire (AFP via Getty Images)The close results sparked a bitter rant from Trump
Despite some thinking Trump would easily beat Haley, the result was much closer than anticipated.
Haley secured 43.1% of the votes to Trump's 54.6%. The tight race triggered a bitter outburst from the ex-President. Unlike his unity call during his election night speech in Iowa, Trump expressed his anger that Haley is not stepping down after coming second.
"This is not your typical victory speech, but let's not have someone take a victory when she had a very bad night," Trump said, grumbling about Haley's third-place finish in Iowa and her continued presence in the race. "I don't get too angry. I get even," he told a crowd of supporters in a packed hotel ballroom.
Trump criticised Haley, saying: "You can't let people get away with (expletive)," after she didn't drop out of the race post his New Hampshire GOP primary win. On her part, Haley was gracious in defeat. At her election night party, she expressed gratitude to New Hampshire "for the love, the kindness, the support and a great night."
Haley also congratulated Trump on his victory, stating, "He earned that, and I want to acknowledge that." However, she insisted that the GOP race "is far from over." She pledged to continue her "scrappy" campaign in her home state of South Carolina, which will hold its GOP primary next month.
Republican presidential candidate, Nikki Haley, lost to Trump (Getty Images)Both Haley and Trump 'break law' by electioneering at polling stations
Both Trump and Haley were accused of breaking the law by electioneering at polling stations during the New Hampshire primary. This claim was confirmed by a political expert and caused outrage among voters on social media. The Republican presidential front-runner was accompanied by Majorie Taylor Green, Republican representative of Georgia. Users on X, formerly Twitter, claimed Trump was violating voting laws, specifically the act of electioneering.
The law says that anyone running for office, and their teams, can't hand out campaign material or canvas voters close to voting places. It's to keep voters safe and make sure nothing unfair happens near the polling station doors.
Inderjeet Parmar, a big politics professor at City, University of London, told The Mirror: "That's so blatant and Haley doing it too. They say a fish rots from the head down - that's the GOP."
The ex-president was caught on camera shouting "don't waste your time. Get in and vote" to his fans. He got a massive welcome when he showed up, with one person even skipping work to see him.
US President Joe Biden has all but clinched his party's nomination (Anadolu via Getty Images)Biden won without his name on the ballot
President Joe Biden scooped up New Hampshire's Democratic primary without even being on the ballot.
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He didn't go to the state or put his name forward because New Hampshire went against new rules and had its primary before South Carolina did.
Biden said thanks to everyone who wrote his name down in the Democratic primary. He also reached out to people who don't like Trump, including independents and Republicans, asking them to back him.
Biden warned the nation, saying: "My message to the country is the stakes could not be higher. Our Democracy. Our personal freedoms - from the right to choose to the right to vote. Our economy - which has seen the strongest recovery in the world since COVID. All are at stake."
Trump appeared at a polling site in Londonderry, New Hampshire (Getty Images)New Hampshire governor slams Trump’s ‘advanced age’
A row also has erupted within the Republican Party. New Hampshire's governor, Chris Sununu, and former President Donald Trump have been trading insults during the state's primary elections.
Sununu has thrown his weight behind Nikki Haley, the ex-governor of South Carolina and Trump's former UN Ambassador. But Trump used his social media platform, Truth Social, to criticise Sununu and his support for Haley. He also had a pop at Fox News - a network he was unofficially banned from after the Jan. 6 Capitol Riot.
However, Fox News has recently started covering Trump again, even hosting one of his town halls during a Republican Presidential debate. This seems to have led Trump to believe that the network is backing him as he campaigns against other candidates.
"Why does Fox keep putting New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu on??? Every time I mention his name at a Rally, they BOOO like crazy. He's all jacked up on something, but he ran for President, without having the courage to announce, and did really poorly. To have this loser on so much is really bad TV," Trump blasted on Truth Social about Sununu.
Sununu didn't hold back in his response, firing back on X, formerly known as Twitter: "I suppose it's tough keeping up with the conversation given your advanced age. Maybe try subtitles next time. Thanks for watching."
Melania and Trump have appeared in public far less in the latest election campaign (AFP via Getty Images)Trump celebrates win without wife Melania
Melania and Ivanka appeared to be missing from Donald Trump's victory celebrations days after the couple were spotted travelling in separate cars.
Despite Trump's triumph, both Melania Trump and daughter Ivanka were noticeably absent from the festivities. The former President and Melania, who tied the knot on January 22, 2005, marked their 19th wedding anniversary on Monday, with neither of them publicly acknowledging the milestone.
After Melania's dear mum, Amalija Knavs, passed away, the former First Lady and her husband, the ex-President, were spotted taking separate cars. They looked quite apart even though they were together at the service. A clip online shows Melania hopping into a black SUV with her security, while Donald stands by before he heads to another vehicle. People on the internet are whispering that this might mean trouble between them. One person pointed out on Twitter, "Separate cars," and some others said, "Separate lives."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to webhomepage@mirror.co.uk
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