President Obama easily wins Texas primary; Romney secures Republican nomination

May 31, 2012 Despite the less favorable results in West Virginia and Arkansas, U.S. Barack Obama easily carried Texas with 88 percent support from that state's Democratic Party primary voters. On the Republican side, former Massachusetts Mitt Romney surpassed the required 1,144 delegates to clinch his party's presidential nomination ahead of the August.

Due to the Republican result, Romney is now officially that party's presumptive presidential nominee, setting up a general election battle between him and President Obama, who already secured the Democratic Party nomination. Obama called Romney on Wednesday morning to congratulate him on his victory in which he won 69 percent of the vote. Congressman Ron Paul finished second with 11.9 percent.

The Democratic result marks the end of the primary challenge to Obama that was waged by such candidates as Tennessee attorney John Wolfe, Jr., who won, but polled only 5.1 percent overall; and entrepreneur Bob Ely, who took both and  counties, but won only 2.4 percent overall. Historian Darcy Richardson, who finished at 4.3 percent, had already ended his campaign.

The end of the contested primaries on the Democratic side does not conclude the legal actions of Wolfe and others trying to prevent the unanimous nomination of Obama at September's. Wolfe filed suit against the for refusing to grant delegates after he won 42 percent in the state. Prison inmate has accused the  of fraud following his 41 percent showing there and is calling for an investigation.

Unlike West Virginia and Arkansas, more Texas voters participated in the Republican than the Democratic primary, though turnout was low overall. The open seat vacated by the retiring Republican  drew interest to the primary race between former Texas Solicitor General  and. Dewhurst won 43 percent of the vote, falling short of the necessary 50 percent to avoid a runoff with Cruz, who finished with 33 percent.

The next set of primaries will take place June 5 in California, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota.