Joe Biden sweeps South Carolina primary with ‘loser’ taunt at Donald Trump

Biden secured 96.4 per cent of the votes in the first Democratic primary of the 2024 race, according to results with half the ballots tallied

He urged people to get out and vote in November, saying the stakes for the US could not be higher if Trump manages a comeback to the Oval Office

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President Joe Biden speaks at the South Carolina Democratic Party’s First-in-the-Nation Celebration Dinner on January 27 in Columbia, South Carolina. Photo: The State/TNS

Published: 10:47am, 4 Feb 2024

US President Joe Biden on Saturday cruised to victory in the South Carolina Democratic primary, afterwards vowing he would make Republican rival Donald Trump a loser for a second time in November’s election.

Democrats will now pore over the results to see how well the 81-year-old incumbent, battling low approval ratings, mobilised the black voters who helped propel him to the White House four years ago against Trump.

Kicking off his march to his party’s nomination, Biden secured a massive 96.4 per cent of the votes in the first Democratic primary of the 2024 race, according to results with half the ballots tallied.

He swept past his only rivals on the ballot, self-help author Marianne Williamson, who won 2 per cent, and Minnesota congressman Dean Phillips, who won 1.6 per cent, US news organisations said.

A person casts a vote in the Democratic Presidential Primary at a polling station on February 3 in West Columbia, South Carolina. Photo: AFP

As the results came in, Biden was at a campaign event in California, as he turns his attention to the next steps in his fight for re-election.