Florida Primary 2016: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton Win Big; Rubio Out

Florida voters have overwhelmingly backed Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump for their party's nominations.

Trump had the lead in the winner-take-all Republican primary with 45.46 percent of the vote as of Tuesday night. Sen. Marco Rubio trailed in second place with 27.31 percent.

Clinton had a landslide on the Democratic side with 64.72 percent of the vote to Sen. Bernie Sanders' 32.98 percent.

The Florida Division of Elections estimated turnout in the 2016 Presidential Preference Primary at 46.04 percent. The state has a total of 8,845,892 registered Democrats and Republicans. Historical data shows Tuesday's primary turnout topped past years. In 2012, the presidential primary saw a 41 percent turnout. The 2008 turnout was 42 percent. Only 20 percent of Florida's voters turned out for the 2004 primary.

While not all of Florida's precincts had reported in when both races were called, concessions had been made even before 9 p.m. rolled around. Following news of Trump's projected victory in Florida, Sen. Marco Rubio announced the suspension of his campaign.

Despite the loss, Rubio said he remained optimistic about America and its future. He called for a a "vibrant conservative movement" in the country that is "built on principles. A conservative movement that believes in the principles of our constitution."

See Also:

• 2016 Primary Results: Live Updates
• Florida Governor Rick Scott Endorses Donald Trump ... Sort Of

Rubio’s departure from the race leaves Trump, Sen. Ted Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich battling it out for the Republican nomination. The victory in the swing state of Florida put Trump in the lead for the delegate race by 568 to Cruz’s 370. A total of 1,237 delegates are needed for the Republican nomination. Trump earned 99 delegates thanks to his Florida victory.

Trump spokes to supporters at his Florida home Tuesday night and touted the endorsements of Ben Carson and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie

"We have to bring our party together," he said. "We have something happening that is actually making the Republican party the biggest political story in the world."

Trump invoked the Paris attacks as having inspired his campaign. "We need protection in our country, and all of a sudden the poll numbers shot up."

"This country is going to start winning again," he said. "We don't win anymore."

Trump promised to "knock the hell out of Isis," and said the United States was "losing" in trade arrangements with countries from Mexico to China.

Tuesday’s results are shaping up to create a “three-horse race going forward” for the Republicans, Frank Orlando, political science professor at Florida’s Saint Leo University, told Patch. “It won’t be Ted Cruz versus Donald Trump just yet.”

While Rubio’s announcement is, no doubt, making Trump happy, Orlando said, it doesn’t necessarily signal an easy path forward for the current Republican frontrunner. With Kasich’s projected victory in his home state and Cruz’s current delegate count, it’s unlikely either will pull out just yet.

Can Donald Trump be stopped, Orlando said, remains a valid question as primary season moves forward. And, if Trump does manage to secure the nomination, there are plenty of doubts he’ll be able to take on Clinton successfully in the general election.

“He would start as a very, very big underdog,” Orlando said. While Trump has managed to make “fools” out of people who didn’t think he’d go anywhere in the Republican Primary race, the General Election is a whole different ballgame.

“He’s going to have to stand there on the debate stage with Hillary and answer questions about policy,” Orlando said. “That’s a problem. Everything’s going to be trained on him. Even if Hillary doesn’t have the kind of enthusiasm the Bernie Sanders campaign has, she’ll be able to motivate people to vote out of contempt for Donald Trump.”

The general election is Nov. 8. And, Orlando pointed out, "November's a long way to go."

Focusing on November is what Florida Gov. Rick Scott says Republicans now need to do. In an endorsement of sorts issued Wednesday, Scott urged Republicans to get behind Trump and prepare to earn a victory in the general election.

“With his victories yesterday, I believe it is now time for Republicans to accept and respect the will of the voters and coalesce behind Donald Trump,” Scott wrote.

Images via Gage Skidmore, Flickr