South Carolina primary live: Trump takes victory lap as Nikki Haley vows to stay in Republican race

Nikki Haley hugs fans after losing South Carolina primary

Former president Donald Trump has defeated Nikki Haley in the South Carolina GOP primary.

The former president’s win was initially projected at 7pm on Saturday night just as polls closed.

Mr Trump secured the expected victory over Ms Haley in her home state, where she served as governor from 2011 to 2017.

This marks yet another defeat for former UN Ambassador Haley, who vowed to continue fighting Mr Trump despite her many primary losses.

Ms Haley stayed resolute even after losing to the “none of these candidates” box listed on Nevada ballot papers earlier this month.

“I said earlier this week that no matter what happens in South Carolina, I would continue to run… I’m a woman of my word,” she said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump compared migrants to Hannibal Lecter as he claimed that they are coming from “insane asylums” during his almost 90-minute meandering and ominous speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland.

The former president was speaking about his anti-Biden messaging efforts on Saturday, saying that “migrant crime” is a “new category of crime”.

Senator Lindsey Graham was met with a hostile reception in his home state as he joined Donald Trump during his victory speech in South Carolina on Saturday night.

The former president called Senator Graham on stage after he was projected to be the winner of the South Carolina Republican presidential primary, beating his rival Nikki Haley in the state where she served as governor from 2011 to 2017.

Report:

‘This is the most qualified man to be president of the United States,’ Graham says about Trump

Former president Donald Trump is projected to defeat Nikki Haley in