Despite her hopes of “momentum” after a single primary win on Sunday in Washington D.C., Nikki Haley had a figurative Mount Everest to climb on Super Tuesday.

Her delegate deficit going into Super Tuesday was over 200, and thanks to so many of the Super Tuesday states being “winner take all,” her prospects were grim.

WATCH: Nikki Haley faces a challenge on Super Tuesday with winner-take-all states, says @SteveKornacki.

“Unless she’s winning states … she’s going to get buried in a delegate avalanche.” pic.twitter.com/IkdFem9Awx

— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) March 3, 2024

The numbers do not favor Nikki Haley. California, Maine, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Utah, and Vermont are “winner take all” states, which means that all Donald Trump has to do is get one more vote than Haley does, and he walks away with all the delegates. The other states award their delegates proportionately, or with the winner taking most of them while a few delegates are parceled out to those who get certain percentages, as in the cases of Alabama and Arkansas. But if Trump wins both states, he will get all or most of the delegates, with a lone delegate in Arkansas being the best that Haley can do if she gets at least 20 percent of the vote.

Obviously, with so many states voting tonight, this post will continue to be updated during the evening. As of 7:30 pm Pacific Time, Donald Trump is currently walking off with the vote in all the states that have closed the polls up to this point, with the lone exception of Vermont. In fact, it looks as if Nikki Haley has officially won Vermont by the skin of her teeth.

Decision Desk HQ projects Nikki Haley wins the Vermont Republican Primary.#DecisionMade: 10:21pm ET

Follow results here: https://t.co/4lhyrFrWh8 pic.twitter.com/yNwEGrEvqX

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) March 6, 2024

So Haley will walk away with all 17 of Vermont’s delegates. Contrast that count with Vermont’s neighbor Maine, which currently has Trump with 73% of the vote and 55% of the vote counted. North Carolina’s numbers look very much like Maine’s. Winning Vermont is not enough to keep Haley competitive in this race.

The biggest prize tonight is obviously California, which is “winner take all” with 169 delegates at stake. Haley has little hope of winning the state. Super Tuesday represents one-third of all the states. There isn’t enough momentum, or math, that can make this work for Nikki Haley.

California is also drawing eyes because of the Senate race. The race to fill the late Dianne Feinstein’s seat has been financially dominated by Pelosi favorite Adam Schiff. Because California has a “jungle primary” where only the top two vote-getters advance to the general election, this could mean that two Democrats would be competing for the seat. Katie Porter is desperate to be the second candidate, but Republican Steve Garvey, who has strong name recognition in California because of his status as a former Los Angeles Dodger, could snag the second spot. Garvey is benefiting from the fact that Schiff, Porter, and Barbara Lee are currently splitting the Democrat primary vote.

The campaign for the seat in deep-blue California has been a long battle. Even before Feinstein said she wouldn’t seek reelection, multiple candidates had already announced they would enter the race for a seat that hadn’t been open for three decades. And it may be years before another opportunity, with the state’s other seat being held by Sen. Alex Padilla, a 50-year-old Democrat who was nominated by Gov. Gavin Newsom to finish Vice President Kamala Harris’ term and then elected to his first full term in 2022.

Participating in the crowded primary — which includes a slew of lesser known individuals — are four major candidates. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff has been considered the front-runner throughout the campaign. But a recent poll from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, co-sponsored by The Los Angeles Times, had former professional baseball star Steve Garvey, a Republican, in a statistical tie for first. Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee and Katie Porter are also making a push to earn enough support to advance to the general election in November.

The two candidates who finish first and second, regardless of party, will face off against each other in November. The same UC Berkeley poll found that if Schiff and Garvey advance, Schiff would be the overwhelming favorite to beat Garvey.

The Senate primary is truly much more interesting than the presidential primary in California. Does Garvey have a shot if he makes the general election? It seems a long shot, but Schiff is Schiff. And yet California is California. We shall see.

UPDATE 8:15 PM PT
The polls closed just minutes ago and Joe Biden and Donald Trump have already been declared the winners of the California primaries. That didn’t take long.

However, we do have a very weird moment happening out in American Samoa, which is also voting today. Who, exactly, is Jason Palmer???

According to results provided by the Democratic Party in American Samoa, Jason Palmer has won the American Samoa Democratic Caucus.

Follow results here: https://t.co/EN1rgvRznL pic.twitter.com/N5DFS3IJNn

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) March 6, 2024

Frankly, this is hilarious. Who the hell is this guy?

I found out that I had won because my phone started blowing up with friends and campaign staffers texting me,” Palmer said in an interview late Tuesday.
Palmer, 52, said he never visited the territory before the caucus.

“I have been campaigning remotely, doing Zoom town halls, talking to people, listening to them about their concerns and what matters to them,” he said.

On the day before the caucus, Palmer posted on X that “Washington D.C. is long overdue for a president who will be an advocate for American Samoa.” His account includes pictures of young people holding homemade campaign signs.

Palmer is a Baltimore resident who has worked for various businesses and nonprofits, often on issues involving technology and education. He said voters want “someone who is more of the 21st century than Joe Biden” to serve as president.

Palmer has now officially won more primaries than Dean Phillips, and gained a whopping 11 delegates. Now, does this really count? Well, yes and no. Yes, because that vote total is real and spectacular. No, because American Samoa has a history of doing strange things during primaries, like picking Michael Bloomberg in 2020.

So, if Joe Biden keels over before the convention, does this mean Jason Palmer is now the de facto runner-up? Hmmmm.

UPDATE 8:55 PM PT
Nikki Haley isn’t giving a speech tonight, but released a statement.

NEW: Statement from @NikkiHaley campaign:

“We’re honored to have received the support of millions of Americans across the country today, including in Vermont where Nikki became the first Republican woman to win two presidential primary contests. Unity is not achieved by simply…

— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) March 6, 2024

So, being 500 delegates behind Trump in totals is…. what? Not a sign?

And it’s official – Adam Schiff will face off against Steve Garvey.

Decision Desk HQ projects Steve Garvey (R) advances to the general election for US Senate in California.#DecisionMade: 11:45pm ET

Follow results here: https://t.co/2AE7U3TBZI pic.twitter.com/3o9g664lTy

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) March 6, 2024

There is a dual election tonight, because voters are actually going to remove Senator Laphonza Butler, who was a placeholder after Dianne Feinstein died. Currently, Schiff is leading in that election as well. Ew. Can you imagine Schiff getting a head start on being a Senator?

Featured image: original Victory Girls art by Darleen Click