DHAKA: Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump carved out dominant positions in their party nominating races on Super Tuesday, marching ever closer to a scorched-earth general election clash on November 8.

Trump swamped his rivals by piling up seven wins across the nation, demonstrating broad appeal for his anti-establishment movement, reports the CNN.

Clinton also had a strong night, winning seven states and showing her strength with minorities in the South.

Trump won across the conservative South in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia, but also captured more moderate Massachusetts and Vermont.

Clinton, the former secretary of state and senator, won in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

"This has been an amazing night," Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. He vowed to be a "unifier" and to go after Clinton with a singular focus once the GOP race eventually winds up.

But Trump's GOP rivals vowed to fight on. Ted Cruz won his home state of Texas, the biggest single prize of the night, and added Oklahoma and Alaska. And Florida Sen. Marco Rubio finally landed his first win of the 2016 season in the Minnesota Republican caucuses.

Trump's victories suggested that he did not pay a significant price for a controversy that flared in recent days over his initial failure to disavow David Duke, a former Ku Klux Klan leader, during a CNN interview, and disputes over his business record and positions on immigration.

BDST:  1614 HRS, MAR 02, 2016
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** Hillary and Trump rack up early wins