Election 2024: Trump projected winner of Kentucky Republican presidential primary
Former President Donald Trump has won the Republican presidential primary in Kentucky.
The Associated Press called the race for Trump shortly after polls closed in the commonwealth.
Because Kentucky has one of the latest presidential primaries in the nation, Trump entered the contest Tuesday as the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, having already amassed more than enough delegates to clinch the win.
Other high-profile Republican candidates — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy — suspended their campaigns months ago, though they still appeared on the ballot in Kentucky and elsewhere.
Trump, 77, is expected to challenge President Joe Biden, 81, in a 2020 rematch come Election Day on Nov. 5.
In the 2020 election, Trump carried Kentucky by more than 25 percentage points over Biden. the former VP, however, would go on to win the necessary Electoral College votes to secure the presidency.
Trump has falsely claimed that he was the rightful winner of the 2020 election due to widespread voter fraud.
On Jan. 6, 2021, a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to prevent Congress from certifying the results of the presidential election. Since then, more than 1,200 people have been criminally charged for the attack.
Trump also faces felony charges on allegations he was a part of a conspiracy to overturn the legitimate election results.
It’s one of four ongoing criminal cases for the embattled former president.
Also on Tuesday, Trump’s defense team rested its case in his New York felony hush money trial. Trump did not take the stand, as was his right. Juror deliberations are set to begin next week.
The 45th president also faces state criminal charges in Georgia for alleged election interference, and federal court in Florida for allegedly mishandling classified national security documents.
Trump won the presidency in 2016 over Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, making him the first U.S. president with no prior government or military service.
Inaugurated at the age of 70, Trump was the second-oldest president at the time he was sworn in. First on that list is Biden, inaugurated at age 78.
Before running for office, Trump was best known as a real estate developer and reality television star on The Apprentice.
Trump is married to Melania Trump, and has five adult children. He resides in Florida.
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