WATCH: All Three Cable News Networks Call Nikki Haley’s Home State For Donald Trump Within Seconds of Polls Closing

 

All three major cable news networks projected Donald Trump as the winner in the South Carolina GOP primary just moments after the polls closed at 7 p.m.

While Trump led Nikki Haley in most polling in the state, the swift and definitive victory is still surprising as Haley is a former governor from the state.

On MSNBC, Rachel Maddow called the result unsurprising, while national political correspondent Steve Kornacki said a win could be projected so early because the exit polling was “unusually overwhelming in this case.” The network’s decision desk took four seconds to make their projection.

CNN’s Jake Tapper reported the projection from the network’s decision desk moments after reporting the polls had closed. He noted the fourth primary victory for the former president is the latest example of his “dominance” in the GOP race for the presidential nomination.

“Not a lot of suspense tonight,” Fox News’ Bret Baier noted after Martha MacCallum reported the network’s decision desk projected the victory.

NewsNation also called the race one minute after polls closed, at 7:01 p.m.

Watch above via MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News.

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Zachary Leeman covered pop culture and politics at outlets such as Breitbart, LifeZette, BizPac Review, HollywoodinToto, and others. He is the author of the novel Nigh. He joined Mediaite in 2022.