Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton dominated on Super Tuesday but the day had a few surprises. Sens. Ted Cruz, the Republican from Texas, and Bernie Sanders, Vermont's independent running in the primary as a Democrat, won not only their home states but also Oklahoma, while New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie showed up again on the campaign trail.
Here's a look at a few notable moments as 12 states went to the polls.
Where's Christie?
Christie is not only out of the presidential race but if six Gannett newspapers in his state have their way, he’ll be out of a job too.
The newspapers issued a joint editorial Tuesday calling on Christie to resign following his failed presidential campaign and his endorsement of Trump. If he doesn’t, New Jersey should start a recall effort, the papers wrote.
"We’re fed up with Gov. Chris Christie’s arrogance," the editorial said. "We’re fed up with his opportunism. We’re fed up with his hypocrisy."
[NATL] Highlights From the 2016 Campaign Trail
Christie spent part of 261 days out of state last year and later traveled to endorse Trump, the editorial noted.
U.S. & World
That was true again on Tuesday, when Christie was in Florida to introduce Trump before a speech.
“America wants to be strong and successful again but they know that to do that they need to have a strong, bold, tough, decisive leader back in the Oval Office,” Christie said.
Christie, who stood behind Trump as the businessman spoke, has denied that he is jockeying for a job in a Trump administration.
He was notably subdued when joining Trump, which prompted a lot of chatter on Twitter. One of the hashtags that gained prominence was #FreeChrisChristie.
Head-to-Head With Trump?
Cruz wasted no time in urging his Republican rivals to back him so that he could take on Trump head-to-head.
“So long as the field remains divided Donald Trump’s path to the nomination remains more likely,” he said. “And that would be a disaster for Republicans, for conservatives and for the nation.”
He said he was the only Republican who had beaten Trump three times — in Iowa, Texas and Oklahoma.
“After tonight we have seen that our campaign is the only campaign that has beaten, that can beat and that will beat Donald Trump,” he said.
Late in the night, Sen. Marco Rubio got his first win, in Minnesota.
Taking on Trump
Even before Super Tuesday was over, Clinton was looking ahead not only to the next round of primaries but to the general election and her expected rival, Trump.
“We know we’ve got work to do but that work is not to make America great again,” she said in a dig at Trump’s campaign slogan. “America never stopped being great. We have to make America whole.”
“USA, USA,” the crowd chanted.
“I believe what we need in America today is more love and kindness,” she said. “Because you know what, it works. Instead of building walls, we’re going to break down barriers and build ladders of opportunity and empowerment.”
In his speech Tuesday, Trump insisted the country would build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, a mainstay of his campaign.
And, he said, "Mexico is going to pay for the wall."
A Lavish Backdrop
Trump has gone his own way in the contest for the Republican presidential nomination and Super Tuesday was no exception.
Trump chose to give a news conference instead of the traditional victory party.
The Associated Press noted that reporters had assembled hours before in what it described as a Versailles-worthy room at his sprawling Mar-a-Lago estate in West Palm Beach, adorned with gold-leaf detailing, columns, and three enormous crystal chandeliers.
An Early Night
Sanders came out early in the evening to give a victory speech in his home state of Vermont, where polls were among the first to close on Super Tuesday.
“I am so proud to bring Vermont values all across the country,” he told a crowd chanting “Feel the Bern” and “Bernie.”
By speaking so early, Sanders was able to savor his win despite losses that came later in the evening. He predicted he would win many hundreds of delegates as they were divided proportionately among the candidates.
He did win hundreds of delegates but Clinton won more.
