Hillary Clinton trounced Bernie Sanders in the key states of Florida and Ohio on Tuesday night, pulling away in the delegate race and delivering a full-throated call to arms against Donald Trump in her victory speech.

The former secretary of state appeared to be on the verge of a clean sweep of the five contests of the night. She also scored victories in North Carolina and Illinois. In the fifth state, Missouri, Clinton was leading by about 1,500 votes with all but two precincts reporting early Wednesday morning.


“Tonight it’s clearer than ever that this might be one of the most consequential campaigns of our lifetimes,” Clinton said in a triumphant speech that clearly showed her turning her attention to Trump.

She laid out her standards for President Barack Obama’s successor, and argued that Trump fell far short of them. “Our commander in chief has to be able to defend our country, not embarrass it,” she said, adding that Trump’s vision is a dangerous one.

“When we hear a candidate for president call for rounding up 12 million immigrants, banning all Muslims from entering the U.S., when he embraces torture, that doesn’t make him strong, it makes him wrong,” she told the fired-up crowd in Florida. “And yes, our next president has to bring our country together so we can all share in the promise of America. We should be breaking down barriers, not building walls.”

She declared, “And this isn’t just about Donald Trump. All of us have to do our part.”

In Ohio, Clinton won 57 percent of the vote to Sanders’ 43 percent — a huge margin considering polls had shown her with a single-digit lead in the state going into Tuesday. In North Carolina, Clinton secured 55 percent to Sanders' 41 percent, while In Florida, she won 65 percent to Sanders' 33 percent. With 94 percent of precincts reporting in Illinois, Clinton led Sanders 51 percent to 49 percent.

"We will add to our delegate lead to nearly three hundred” with “more than 2 million” more votes, Clinton said on Tuesday night. A defiant Sanders vowed that he's still on the path to the nomination.

Clinton came into Tuesday with more than twice as many delegates as Sanders, 1235 to 580. Even without superdelegates included, Clinton leads 748 to 542 in pledged delegates. Clinton is now assured of the lion’s share of the 700 delegates that were in play Tuesday, moving her closer to the Democrats magic number of 2,382.

The comfortable victory in Ohio is a huge dose of reassurance for the Clinton campaign and a big blow to Sanders, who was buoyed by a stunning victory in Michigan last week. The Vermont senator has not given any indication of bowing out, with his campaign earlier on Tuesday vowing to stay in until the convention. And knockout blows are hard to come by in the Democratic race, where — in contrast to a GOP contest Tuesday punctuated by winner-take-all primaries — all delegates are awarded proportionally.

But with Sanders largely sidelined, the Democratic establishment is rising up against Trump. Obama on Tuesday gave a sobering speech about the “vulgar and dismissive rhetoric” in the GOP race and scolded Republicans for not more strongly speaking out against him. On Wednesday, the effort will ratchet up with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid holding an event at the Center for American Progress, a home for Clinton’s allies, to condemn Trump and “Republicans’ platform of hate.” Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz will deliver her own blows, appearing alongside Sen. Chuck Schumer, to name and shame Trump and the larger GOP.



Even Sanders himself seemed to take part in the pivot. In an hour-long speech to supporters in Phoenix, the senator made no mention of the day’s results, and made only two mentions of Clinton. Instead, he focused on Trump: "The reason that Donald Trump will never be elected president is the American people will not accept insults to Mexicans, to Muslims, or women," Sanders said to a roaring crowd of supporters. "The American people will not accept a president who insults our veterans. Or who several years ago led the so-called birther effort which was an ugly, ugly attempt to undermine the legitimacy of the presidency of Barack Obama."

Sanders issued a statement around midnight declaring that his supporters will take him all the way to the convention. “With more than half the delegates yet to be chosen and a calendar that favors us in the weeks and months to come, we remain confident that our campaign is on a path to win the nomination," he said.

Sanders' hope now rests on a string of upcoming contests in friendlier territory. In Arizona’s primary on March 22, Sanders will face another test of his ability to make gains with non-white voters. He will, however, also get to run in caucuses in Idaho and Utah — a format that is well-suited for a campaign based on hard-core enthusiasts — and another set of caucuses in Alaska and Hawaii four days later.

But unless Sanders can start winning the types of states Clinton did Tuesday, he’ll be trading small victories for big ones and watching the frontrunner run away with the nomination.

In the meantime, Clinton and her Democratic allies will increasingly turn their attention to Trump.

The Republican frontrunner on Tuesday scored a big victory in Florida, knocking Marco Rubio out of the race, and won Illinois, but lost Ohio to John Kasich. The uneven outcome means Trump could have trouble securing the 1,237 delegates needed to clinch the nomination, sending the Republican Party to a contested convention in July.

Clinton, however, realizes that she needs to crank up her fundraising machine, as Sanders continues raising massive amounts of cash and as she prepares to battle with Trump, who is largely self-funding his campaign. “Our campaign depends on small donations for the majority of our support,” she said Tuesday night. “So if you’ve been waiting for the right moment, now’s the time to come and join us.”

Annie Karni and Gabriel Debenedetti contributed to this report.