Highlights from the South Carolina GOP primary:
- NBC News projects that former President Donald Trump has won the South Carolina Republican presidential primary against former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and will receive all 29 at-large delegates. Polls closed at 7 p.m. ET.
- There were a total of 50 delegates up for grabs. The statewide winner will take all of the at-large delegates, while the winner of each congressional district will earn three delegates.
- Trump continued his unbeaten 2024 primary streak thanks to his dominance among core Republican voter groups, NBC News exit poll results show.
- Despite losing her home state, Haley vowed to stay in the race, turning her attention to next week's Michigan primary, followed by Super Tuesday.
NBC News exit poll: S.C. GOP primary voters prioritize immigration
Immigration ranked as the highest priority for South Carolina Republican primary voters today, according to NBC News exit poll results.
Thirty-seven percent of voters said that immigration was the issue that mattered most to their vote, followed by the economy (33%), foreign policy (13%), and abortion (10%).
Among voters who chose immigration as their most important issue, 82% supported Trump and only 18% backed Haley.
Just under 7 in 10 South Carolina Republican primary voters also said that they trust Trump to handle border security more than Haley.
Sixty-six percent of voters said that most undocumented immigrants in the U.S. should be deported to the countries they came from, while 30% said they should be offered a chance to apply for legal status.
That is a stark contrast to 2016, when 44% of South Carolina Republican primary voters said immigrants should be deported to the country they came from and 53% said they should be offered a chance to apply for legal status.
Trump aides and allies push for a post-South Carolina 'pivot'
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A growing chorus of top advisers to Donald Trump is urging him to fixate less on personal grievances and instead focus on hitting President Joe Biden and unifying the Republican Party.
The attempt to turn to broader themes comes as the campaign looks ahead to Super Tuesday and the general election, according to nine top Trump aides and allies who spoke to NBC News. Trump’s commanding win in South Carolina over Nikki Haley is yet another illustration of an undeniable political reality: Trump will be the GOP nominee.
“There is no question that after Saturday there will be a pivot, because there needs to be,” said a top adviser to the former president. “There is a mindset from our perspective that she [Haley] can do whatever she wants. She can do whatever, we don’t care.”
Biden campaign co-chair says he's 'disgusted' by Trump's comments on Black Americans
The Biden campaign is hitting back at Trump's claim that "the Black people" like him because he has been legally "discriminated against."
"Though I may be disgusted, I am not at all surprised that Donald Trump would equate the suffering and injustice of Black people in America to consequences he now faces because of his own actions," said Biden campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond, going on to call Trump's claim "insulting."
"It’s moronic. And it’s just plain racist," Richmond continued in the statement. "He thinks Black voters are so uninformed that we won’t see through his shameless pandering. He has another thing coming."
Haley says today is 'not the end of our story'
Haley said that the U.S. will not get out of a "downward spiral" by "obsessing" over the past.
She added that she was "grateful" that today is "not the end of our story," pointing ahead to the Michigan primary and Super Tuesday.
"We won't rest until America wins," she said.
Haley vows to stay in the race: 'I’m not giving up this fight'
Haley reiterated that she plans to continue her run for president, even after her loss to Trump in her home state.
"I’m a woman of my word," Haley said. "I’m not giving up this fight when a majority of Americans disapprove of both Donald Trump and Joe Biden."
She said that the roughly 40% of the vote she received in the New Hampshire primary and so far in South Carolina "is not some tiny group."
Haley went on to say that voters in states that have not held their primaries yet have the right to a choice.
Haley congratulates Trump on projected South Carolina win
Haley congratulated Trump on his victory in South Carolina, drawing boos from her supporters at her election-night party.
She said she has felt "blessed" throughout her "entire journey," adding that she loves South Carolinians no matter the election results.
Haley said that the country will come apart if people make the wrong choices and that she didn't think Trump could beat Biden in November.
She said that she spoke with her husband, who is serving abroad, this morning.
Haley also called accompanying her mom to the polls "an amazing moment."
Haley's supporters prepare for her to speak
The Charleston ballroom where Haley is expected to speak shortly is about half full of supporters, appearing to be a few hundred.
The supporters have been breaking into chants of “Nikki!” and “President Haley!” — especially when the live feed of CNN shows a county where Haley leads.
The vocal supporters appear to be mostly from Haley’s “Women for Nikki” coalition.
Gavin Newsom: Haley is 'one of our better surrogates'
In an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press" on Saturday, California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said that Haley is one of the Democratic Party's "better surrogates" for making the case against Trump.
"I don't know why Democrats would want her out of the race," he said, adding: "She's one of our better surrogates. I mean, she's defining the opposition to Trump credibly, effectively."
"She's making points I'm applauding every single day," he added.
Haley, who served in the Trump administration as ambassador to the U.N., has stepped up her rhetoric against the former president in recent campaign appearances, making the case that Trump's mental acuity is deteriorating and that he's tied to GOP losses in recent years.
The full interview with Newsom will air Sunday on "Meet the Press."
Trump lauds Lara Trump, Michael Whatley, Kellyanne Conway
In his victory speech, Trump called out Michael Whatley, the chair of the North Carolina Republican Party and Trump's pick to replace Ronna McDaniel as the chair of the Republican National Committee.
"He looks to me like he’s going to be going on to the national Republican Party as the boss," Trump said, also praising his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, whom he's recommended to be the next co-chair of the RNC.
Trump also mentioned "putting Kellyanne [Conway] in the group, too," though he did not specify which position he'd like to see Conway assume.
S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster and Sens. Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott join Trump's victory lap
In his victory speech, Trump invited South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster and South Carolina Sens. Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott to speak.
The three South Carolina Republicans fired up the crowd, with McMaster saying, "I’d like you all to remember this moment that you were here. ... We just hit maximum velocity. We’re going all the way."
Scott asked the cheering crowd, "One survey question ... is South Carolina Trump country?"
And Graham celebrated Trump's victory by calling him "the most qualified man to be president of the United States."