Eyes will be on North Carolina, the only general election battleground voting today. Trump beat Biden there in 2020 by just over a single percentage point.

Following a Supreme Court ruling, Trump remains on the ballot in Colorado and Maine, despite both states trying to disqualify him on the grounds of allegedly inciting insurrection.

Also in Colorado, a last-minute campaign is being cobbled together for a protest vote against Biden - similar to what happened in the Michigan primary, when 13% of voters declared themselves "uncommitted" amid a campaign over the president's support for Israel.

A potential wildcard is that several states are completely open to voters regardless of party registration. One is Virginia, where Republican voters have a reputation of being moderate.

Nikki Haley has often courted more moderate or independent voters - so Virginia might be her best hope of a consolation on what is projected to be a tough night for her.

Image source, Reuters

As voters head to the polls, former President Trump called into Fox News during the network's popular morning programme Fox and Friends to criticise Nikki Haley, his last-standing Republican opponent.

Haley has repeatedly said that she's a better candidate to beat president Biden in November and points to multiple polls supporting her argument.

Many polls show Biden beating Trump in a presidential election rematch, while showing Biden losing to Haley in a hypothetical contest.

However, this morning, Trump called Haley's assertions, and those polls, "a lie".

"She knows it's a lie... she loses to Biden in the polls," Trump said.

After adding his own lie - that "we are winning against Biden in every single poll - Trump said: "It's not gonna matter because I think we're gonna win every state today."

Holly Honderich
US reporter

Image source, Getty Images

From the beginning, former President Donald Trump was the odds-on favourite in race to be the Republican party’s presidential nominee.

Most contests so far - in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina, and Michigan - have only served to cement his advantage.

But Nikki Haley has persevered, criss-crossing the country with nonstop campaign events in an effort to close the gap with Trump.

Haley had her first victory against Trump last week, defeating the former president in the Republican primary in Washington DC. Today, Haley’s time may officially run out.

If Trump gets close to the unbeatable number of delegates (1,215) she will have to face the reality - and the math - that her path to the nomination has closed.

A big voting day for Texanspublished at 15:23 Greenwich Mean Time 5 March

15:23 GMT 5 March

Angelica Casas
reporting from Texas

Image source, .

Image source, Reuters

Everything is bigger in Texas, they say. This primary is no exception.

Alongside both presidential primaries, Texans will be voting in nearly 200 other local and state races, including Ted Cruz’s senator spot. The race to oppose Cruz has become quite competitive among Democrats in the state.

But even local races will come down to voter turnout and how many people won’t be turned off by the seemingly predictable presidential primaries.

More than 1.8 million Texans cast a ballot during early voting - down by about 200,000 compared to 2020, according to data posted by the Texas Tribune.

A closer look at that turnout reveals the drop was almost entirely down to a decrease in Democratic primary voters.

That will surely make a dent in the party’s outcomes throughout the state, especially in a year where issues like immigration, abortion and the economy are front-and-centre.

It’s rare for the nomination process in both parties to be so conclusive, so early in an election year.

The early contests have demonstrated the strength of Joe Biden and Donald Trump – but also some of their potential weaknesses.

Despite significant opposition, Trump has thrashed his Republican opponents, scoring a slight majority in the first contest in Iowa, and only increasing his share from there.

But significant numbers have continued to vote for the only other candidate left in the race - Nikki Haley. The big question is what her supporters will do in November. Will they fall in line behind Trump, abstain from voting, or cross party lines and vote for Biden?

The current president has even less to worry about in terms of intra-party rivals. With Biden’s low approval ratings, there was rampant speculation last year that he might face a strong primary challenge.

As it turned out, he hasn’t been troubled by the campaigns of author Marianne Williamson and Congressman Dean Phillips.

But more than 100,000 Democrats – around 13% - voted “uncommitted” in last week’s Michigan primary, many in protest against the president’s support of Israel in its war in Gaza.

Both candidates face the same question: could dissent now be a sign of further trouble for their prospects in November?

Image source, Shutterstock

Voters in Texas will be making their way to the polls to choose their presidential candidate amongst the backdrop of the largest wildfire in the state's history.

The fires have burned through 1.1 million acres north of the city of Amarillo - making it the second-largest fire in US history.

At least two people have died, with Texas Governor Greg Abbott issuing a disaster declaration for 60 counties.

The region where the fire spread includes a dozen House districts, two Senate seats and two Congressional districts.

A spokesperson for the Texas Secretary of State’s Office told the press there have been "very limited disruptions", and it's expected voters will be able to head to the polls as planned.

Image source, Getty Images

Pop superstar Taylor Swift has posted a message on her Instagram account, urging voters from her home state of Tennessee and other states, to head to the polls for Super Tuesday.

Posting on her Instagram story she writes: "Today March 5 is the Presidential Primary in Tennessee and 16 other states and territories."

"I wanted to remind you guys to vote the people who most represent you into power. If you haven't already, make a plan to vote today.

"Whether you're in Tennessee or somewhere else in the US, check your polling places and times at vote.org."

Swift moved to Tennessee when she was 13 years old to launch her music career. She has 282m followers on Instagram - considerably more than the current US president Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump put together.

Image source, Getty Images

Voters have begun arriving to cast their ballots for their presidential candidate today, as one of the most important days of the US electoral calendar gets under way.

Poll opening and closing times vary between states, but so far 13 of 15 polls have opened.

These are Alabama, Arkansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Colorado, Utah and Virginia.

Voting in California and Alaska will open shortly.

More than a third of the total delegates up for grabs in both Democratic and Republican primaries will be awarded today.

The Democrats will hold nominating contests in 14 of 15 states - all of the states where Republicans are voting in, except Alaska.

Democrats will also vote in American Samoa, but Biden is the presumptive Democrat nominee there.

We’ll also get a result for the Democrat contest in Iowa. 5 March is also the last day for Democrats in Iowa to mail in their ballots in that state's caucuses.

Despite Super Tuesday having the largest delegate haul, it’s worth remembering that neither Biden nor Trump can claim the title of presumptive nominee today - the earliest that could happen is 12 March for Trump and 19 March for Biden.

The Republican and Democratic parties nominate their presidential candidates by holding a series of primaries and caucuses in every US state and territory.

Primaries are a kind of mini-election. Voters cast their ballots privately, either in person or by post, over the course of polling day.

Caucuses instead require party members to attend a location, in person, at a specific time.

Some are closed, meaning you have to be registered with that political party to vote, but some are open, meaning anyone can vote in whichever one they like, regardless of party.

The more votes a candidate gets in a caucus or primary, the more "delegates" they are awarded, and all candidates will be hoping to win an unbeatable majority of delegates.

These delegates will go to national party conventions - big political events in the summer where the overall winner is officially crowned. Delegates will endorse their favourite candidates and the final presidential nominee from each party will be announced.

You can read more about how both systems work here here.

Today, people in 15 states will be voting to pick what candidates they want for president.

• Alabama
• Alaska (Republicans only)
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Minnesota
• North Carolina
• Oklahoma
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Virginia

Democrats in one territory, American Samoa, will also vote. We will also find out the results of the Democratic caucuses in Iowa, which has been held by mail over several weeks.

Sarah Smith
North America editor

Image source, Reuters

For the Democrats there is no doubt that President Joe Biden will comfortably win the nomination, setting up a presidential election in November that will be a re-run of 2020 - Biden against Trump.

Recent polling suggests Biden is currently trailing several points behind the former president. Voters are concerned about Biden’s age – he is 81 – and many say Donald Trump’s policies helped them personally far more than Biden has.

The Super Tuesday results could show us where Trump’s weak spots are. Is the 77-year-old struggling to win over voters with college degrees or suburban women?

Results from states that have already voted show Trump is losing some support among younger votes but appears to have kept the backing of most female Republicans.

In several states the challenge to Biden may not be from a rival candidate but from “uncommitted” votes. Campaigners are urging Democrats to mark the box on the ballot labelled uncommitted to protest against Biden’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas.

Last week a similar effort in Michigan resulted in over 13% of Democrats voting uncommitted. These are voters Biden will need to win back before November if he is to remain in the White House.

Sarah Smith
North America editor

Image source, Reuters

Can we still call today “super” when there's so little doubt over the results?

“Predictable Tuesday” doesn’t have the same ring to it. And there will be plenty of interesting detail to emerge from these primary contests.

Even if we think we know who will emerge victorious.

Donald Trump has already won every Republican primary contest except one. Nikki Haley has scored just one victory in Washington DC – a notoriously liberal city. She is not expected to win any of the 15 states that are going to the polls today.

The Trump campaign predicts that he will have secured an unbeatable majority by the middle of March. Unless Haley pulls out of the race before then. Which would make Trump the Republican nominee.

Image source, Getty Images

The more votes a candidate gets in a caucus or primary, the more “delegates” they are awarded. Later in the summer, these delegates will then vote for their candidate to become the nominee.

The number of delegates differs in each state, and is decided by a convoluted series of criteria. In California's primary, for example, there are 169 Republican delegates up for grabs this year. In Tennessee, there are 58.

There are a total of 2,429 Republican delegates up for grabs. On Super Tuesday, 874 of these are awarded - so more than a third of the total, which is why today matters so much.

Trump and Haley are both trying to bag 1,215 delegates - an unbeatable majority. Right now, Trump boasts a fairly hefty lead, 247 to Haley’s 43. According to polls, the former president will only increase his lead today.

Image source, Getty Images

Super Tuesday is the day in the presidential primary cycle when the most states vote.

It’s a tradition that has developed over the last few decades as states have shifted their Republican and Democratic primaries around the calendar in order to increase their clout in the candidate selection process.

It’s a movable feast - the exact number varies each year - but this year, Super Tuesday includes 15 states: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Alaska (Republicans only).

One territory, American Samoa, will vote as well. We will also find out the results of the Democratic caucuses in Iowa, which has been held by mail over several weeks.

Iowa’s Republicans held their caucuses in mid-January and the results were released that same night.

By the time Super Tuesday is over, more than one-third of Republican delegates will be allocated.

Jemma Crew
Live reporter

Image source, EPA

We’ve arrived at the biggest day of the 2024 election calendar so far.

More states will vote today than on any other day of the presidential primary cycle, with polls open in 15 US states and one American territory.

Joe Biden is likely to win the Democratic nomination, as he is all but uncontested.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump remains the front-runner in the contest to become the Republican candidate for president. His main rival, Nikki Haley, has so far refused to back down.

But if she doesn’t claim some major victories today, her path to the nomination will be all but blocked and Trump will become his party’s presumptive nominee.

In just a few hours, we‘ll have a much more certain picture of who the nominee will be.