A ferocious week of attacks on Donald Trump appeared to loosen his grip on the Republican presidential race on “Super Saturday”, while Bernie Sanders showed there may also be some life left in the Democratic race.

Conservative champion Ted Cruz won heavily in the Republican caucus in Kansas and won by a similar margin in Maine, before Trump underlined his national advantage with victories in Louisiana and Kentucky.

With 47 delegates up for grabs, Louisiana was the biggest prize of the night and the only state using a primary rather than caucus system. Trump has tended to do better in primaries, where his support among first-time voters and independents can overwhelm the more determined activists who back Cruz.

Trump’s victories – by 4.4% in Louisiana and 3.6% in Kentucky – were by smaller margins than Cruz won his states, meaning the Texan took more delegates on the night. The results suggested neither may reach the 1,237 delegates needed to win the Republican nomination outright.

In a speech from Florida delivered after Kentucky was called, Trump fired a warning shot at party leaders tempted to use a so-called brokered convention to introduce fresh candidates, something that could prompt him to run as an independent.

“If they run a third party it will make it impossible for the Republican party to win,” said Trump, warning that a Democratic victory in November could result in a lasting liberal takeover of the supreme court.

“Marco Rubio had a very, very bad night,” he added. ‘I think it’s time he drops out of the race.”

Trump also defended his reference to his penis size in the last TV debate – “I didn’t bring it up, [Rubio] brought it up, but I finished it” – but appeared unwilling to let the initial attacks on the size of his hands go by without one last reference to his golf swing.

“Do I hit the ball good?” he asked. “Do I hit the ball long? Is Trump strong? Huh?”

In the Democratic race, Hillary Clinton lost Kansas and Nebraska to a resurgent Sanders campaign, although her own win in Louisiana, as expected, left her well ahead in net delegates at the end of the night.

(The Guardian)