Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s nomination triumph came almost eight years to the day since her first bid for the Oval Office was spectacularly thwarted by Barack Obama. (AFP)
New York – Hillary Clinton declared a historic victory for women as she grasped the Democratic Party nomination and the chance to become America’s first female president.
“Thanks to you, we’ve reached a milestone,” a beaming Clinton told ecstatic supporters in New York: “the first time in our nation’s history that a woman will be a major party’s nominee.”
The former first lady took a dramatic step toward the White House by winning New Jersey, New Mexico and South Dakota, three of six states voting on the last major date of the 2016 primary calendar.
The biggest prize of all, California, was still up for grabs, but with polls closed there and 40 percent of precincts reporting, Clinton held a substantial lead.
The victories effectively put an end to her battle with challenger Bernie Sanders, the self-declared democratic socialist senator from Vermont who waged an extraordinarily successful grassroots campaign.
But Sanders, ignoring the political writing on the wall, vowed to “continue the fight.”
“Our mission is more than just defeating Donald Trump, it is transforming our country,” he declared to supporters in Santa Monica, California.
Clinton’s triumph came almost eight years to the day since her first Oval Office bid was spectacularly thwarted by a charismatic young senator named Barack Obama.