US President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have secured their parties’ presidential nominations with decisive victories in a slate of low-profile primaries, setting up a general election rematch in November 2024.
The outcome of contests across the states of Georgia, Mississippi and Washington was never in doubt.
Neither Biden nor Trump faced major opposition with their parties, but the magnitude of their wins has given each the majority needed to claim their party’s nomination at their national conventions that will take place this summer.
Not even halfway through the presidential primary calendar, Tuesday marked a crystallising moment for a nation uneasy with its choices in 2024.
There is no longer any doubt that the November election will between two flawed and unpopular presidents.
At 81, Biden is already the oldest president in US history, while the 77-year-old Trump is facing decades in prison as a defendant in four criminal cases.
Their rematch – the first featuring two US presidents since 1912 – will almost certainly deepen the nation’s searing political and cultural divides over the eight-month grind that lies ahead.
Sweeping victories
In a statement, Biden celebrated the nomination while casting Trump as a serious threat to democracy, “running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America.”
He continued, “I am honoured that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party – and our country – in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever.”
