Former President Donald Trump wins Republican presidential primary in Ohio

CLEVELAND — Former President Donald Trump was victorious in the Ohio Republican presidential primary Tuesday night as he continues to prepare for a rematch with incumbent President Joe Biden. 

NBC called the race for the incumbent president just minutes after polls closed at 7:30 p.m.

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Trump had already clinched the GOP nomination for president before Ohio's primary, surpassing the 1,215-delegate threshold on March 12. His opponents on Ohio's ballot included Chris Christie, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, and Ohio native Vivek Ramaswamy.

Despite another overwhelming primary win, Trump's path back to the White House will not be an easy one.

Trump is facing 91 felony counts in four criminal cases involving his handling of classified documents and his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, among other alleged crimes. He’s also facing increasingly pointed questions about his policy plans and relationships with some of the world's most dangerous dictators.

During a rally for GOP U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno in Dayton last weekend, Trump used the stage to deliver a profanity-filled version of his usual rally speech that again painted an apocalyptic picture of the country if Biden wins a second term.

“If I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country," he warned, while talking about the impact of offshoring on the country’s auto industry and his plans to increase tariffs on foreign-made cars.

The Trump-Biden election rematch will be the first featuring two U.S. presidents since 1912, when incumbent President William Howard Taft and former President Theodore Roosevelt were both defeated by Woodrow Wilson. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report

More Election Coverage:

• Ohio March 19 primary election: Real-time updates as voters cast their ballots
• List of Northeast Ohio school districts with levies and bond issues on the March 19 primary election ballot
• Matt Dolan, Frank LaRose and Bernie Moreno: Meet Ohio's Republican candidates for US Senate before March 19 primary election

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