Joe Biden sweeps South Carolina with 'loser' taunt at Donald Trump

United States President Joe Biden Saturday won the South Carolina Democratic primary, the first officially sanctioned race of the party's nominating season, with returns showing him outpacing two other candidates, according to Edison Research.

The vote was closely watched due to concerns about Biden's popularity, particularly among Black voters.

Edison Research predicted Biden win soon after polls closed at 7pm EST on Saturday and his margin of victory held steady as the night wore on, Reuters reported.

Biden won 116,266 votes, or 96.4% out of 120,643 casts, ahead of his main challengers — Dean Phillips and Marianne Williamson. However, turnout failed to exceed expectations, with Democratic officials expecting between 100,000 and 200,000 total votes.

In a victory statement, the Biden campaign said: "In 2020, it was the voters of South Carolina who proved the pundits wrong, breathed new life into our campaign, and set us on the path to winning the presidency.

"Now in 2024, the people of South Carolina have spoken again and I have no doubt that you have set us on the path to winning the presidency again — and making Donald Trump a loser — again," the campaign said in a statement.

Biden, an unpopular incumbent, is expected to win again with a significant majority in the upcoming US election on November 5.

Besides campaign fears that South Carolina's heavily Black electorate might not be energised this time around, there were also doubts about his age and concerns about high consumer prices and security along the US-Mexican border.

Former President Donald Trump, 77, is the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to challenge Biden in the general election.

South Carolina, with over half of its Democratic electorate being Black, has not supported a Democrat since 1976, presenting a crucial test of Biden's appeal due to its typically nine-to-one support for Democrats in presidential races.

Some South Carolina voters were lukewarm about Biden's reelection bid.

"Sometimes I wonder, is his presence enough because you don't see him a lot, you don't hear him a lot," said Martin Orr, 52, a school administrator from McConnells, South Carolina, speaking about Biden, whom he planned to support in the election. 

"Is it quiet because of his age or his physical condition, or what's going on? I think that's what a lot of people are concerned about right now."