WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US Senator Ted Cruz tried to sell in a concession speech a disappointing third place in the South Carolina Republican primary as proof that only he could defeat frontrunner Donald Trump in the race for the Republican Party’s US presidential nomination.
“We are the only campaign that can beat, and has beaten, Donald Trump,” Cruz told an audience in South Carolina on Saturday night.
However, with 99 percent of the vote counted, Cruz trialed more than 10 percent behind a triumphant Trump. The billionaire businessman took 32.5 percent of the Republican vote.
Trump spoke only briefly on Saturday night in acknowledging his victory, reaffirming he will rebuild the US military if elected president.
“This has become a three person race and we will win the nomination, Rubio said. “This country is now ready for a new generation of conservatives to guide us in the 21st century.”
Historically, victory in the Republican primary in South Carolina almost always ensures that the winner goes on to take the party’s presidential nomination.
