<div>Facing no active opposition, Donald Trump today cruised to victory in the Washington state primary and was just one step away from clinching the Republican presidential nomination to set up a likely clash with Hillary Clinton in the November polls.<div><br /></div><div>The win in Washington state where he received 76.2 per cent of the total votes polled brought him less than 10 delegates shy of clinching the nomination.</div><div><br /></div><div>The victory -- winning at least 40 of Washington's delegates -- means 69-year-old Trump now has 1,229 of the 1,237 delegates he needs to clinch the GOP nomination, according to CNN estimates.</div><div><br /></div><div>Four more Washington delegates are still to be decided, potentially boosting the real estate tycoon's total even higher.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the primary, Trump garnered over 76 per cent of the vote as Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich each earned 10 per cent of the vote, while retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson earned 4 per cent of the vote.</div><div><br /></div><div>Washington did not have enough delegates to put him over the line. However, its results do, however, leave him inches short of it with a slate of contests on June 7 in California, New Jersey, New Mexico, Montana and South Dakota sure to seal the deal.</div><div><br /></div><div>"Thank You Washington," Trump tweeted after major news channels projected his win in the state.</div><div><br /></div><div>Trump's victory, however, was overshadowed by the clashes between anti-Trump protesters and police outside his event in Albuquerque, New Mexico.</div><div><br /></div><div>Protesters broke through police barricades, lit fires and threw rocks at the city's convention centre, smashing one door. Some taunted police and jumped on police vehicles.</div><div><br /></div><div>Officers in riot gear and on police horses moved the protesters away from the convention centre as anti-Trump chants rang through the city's streets.</div><div><br /></div><div>Trump is the only Republican candidate left in the race to the White House from the Republican party, which was crowded with as many as 17 candidates at the start of the primary season early this year.</div><div><br /></div><div>On the other hand, the race to the White House in the Democratic party which had just three candidates at the start of this year, is still open.</div><div><br /></div><div>While 68-year-old Clinton is likely to clinch the nomination because of the lead she has in delegate count, her opponent Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont has refused to call off the race till the last vote in the primary election is cast.</div><div><br /></div><div>Campaigning in California, Sanders told his supporters that he would not let Trump become the US President.</div><div><br /></div><div>Sanders' campaign yesterday released a new television spot that will run in California ahead of the state's June 7 primary election.</div><div><br /></div><div>"What choice do Californians have in this election?" Sanders asks in the ad. "The biggest one of all. You have the power to choose a new direction for the Democratic Party. To break the back of a corrupt system of campaign finance that keeps a rigged economy in place. To stand up to Wall Street and make the wealthy pay their fair share. To fight for tuition-free public colleges and universities," he says.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>Sanders, 74, on Monday called on Clinton to join him for a debate in the country's most populous state, but the former secretary of state declined to participate.</div><div><br /></div></div><div><div>Sanders said it was "insulting to the people of California -- our largest state -- that she is not prepared to have a discussion with me about how we address the major crises we face.</div><div><br /></div></div><div>"California, it's a long way to Washington, but you can send them a message they can't ignore," Sanders says as the ad concludes.</div></div>
<div>Facing no active opposition, Donald Trump today cruised to victory in the Washington state primary and was just one step away from clinching the Republican presidential nomination to set up a likely clash with Hillary Clinton in the November polls.<div><br /></div><div>The win in Washington state where he received 76.2 per cent of the total votes polled brought him less than 10 delegates shy of clinching the nomination.</div><div><br /></div><div>The victory -- winning at least 40 of Washington's delegates -- means 69-year-old Trump now has 1,229 of the 1,237 delegates he needs to clinch the GOP nomination, according to CNN estimates.</div><div><br /></div><div>Four more Washington delegates are still to be decided, potentially boosting the real estate tycoon's total even higher.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the primary, Trump garnered over 76 per cent of the vote as Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich each earned 10 per cent of the vote, while retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson earned 4 per cent of the vote.</div><div><br /></div><div>Washington did not have enough delegates to put him over the line. However, its results do, however, leave him inches short of it with a slate of contests on June 7 in California, New Jersey, New Mexico, Montana and South Dakota sure to seal the deal.</div><div><br /></div><div>"Thank You Washington," Trump tweeted after major news channels projected his win in the state.</div><div><br /></div><div>Trump's victory, however, was overshadowed by the clashes between anti-Trump protesters and police outside his event in Albuquerque, New Mexico.</div><div><br /></div><div>Protesters broke through police barricades, lit fires and threw rocks at the city's convention centre, smashing one door. Some taunted police and jumped on police vehicles.</div><div><br /></div><div>Officers in riot gear and on police horses moved the protesters away from the convention centre as anti-Trump chants rang through the city's streets.</div><div><br /></div><div>Trump is the only Republican candidate left in the race to the White House from the Republican party, which was crowded with as many as 17 candidates at the start of the primary season early this year.</div><div><br /></div><div>On the other hand, the race to the White House in the Democratic party which had just three candidates at the start of this year, is still open.</div><div><br /></div><div>While 68-year-old Clinton is likely to clinch the nomination because of the lead she has in delegate count, her opponent Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont has refused to call off the race till the last vote in the primary election is cast.</div><div><br /></div><div>Campaigning in California, Sanders told his supporters that he would not let Trump become the US President.</div><div><br /></div><div>Sanders' campaign yesterday released a new television spot that will run in California ahead of the state's June 7 primary election.</div><div><br /></div><div>"What choice do Californians have in this election?" Sanders asks in the ad. "The biggest one of all. You have the power to choose a new direction for the Democratic Party. To break the back of a corrupt system of campaign finance that keeps a rigged economy in place. To stand up to Wall Street and make the wealthy pay their fair share. To fight for tuition-free public colleges and universities," he says.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>Sanders, 74, on Monday called on Clinton to join him for a debate in the country's most populous state, but the former secretary of state declined to participate.</div><div><br /></div></div><div><div>Sanders said it was "insulting to the people of California -- our largest state -- that she is not prepared to have a discussion with me about how we address the major crises we face.</div><div><br /></div></div><div>"California, it's a long way to Washington, but you can send them a message they can't ignore," Sanders says as the ad concludes.</div></div>