WASHINGTON: Spoiler Alert:
Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton and Republican Donald Trump emerged from Tuesday's coast-to-coast contests the presumptive presidential nominees of their parties.
No suspense there: Trump has held that title for weeks, and Clinton clinched it on the eve of the votes. But Tuesday's contests in six states and the candidates' speeches were full of history, emotion and drama.
Clinton soaked in the history she has made as the first woman ever assured of a major party's presidential nomination. Donald Trump seized the opportunity to speak in the unifying, substantive tones Republican leaders have demanded in recent days.
And for Bernie Sanders, Tuesday's contests could cap a remarkable and resilient campaign to level the American playing field — one that vexed the Clinton armada for a solid year. But Tuesday's contests gave Sanders a new taste of victory, and his campaign suggested he's not done.
Political mathletes get to stand down after Tuesday's votes and the final contest of the primaries in District of Columbia June 14.
Here's a look at how Tuesday is unfolding:
THE BASICS:
The evening began with 694 Democratic delegates up for grabs in New Jersey, California, Montana, NewMexico, North Dakota and South Dakota. The District of Columbia, which offers 20 delegates, is the last to vote.
On the Republican side? That's all, folks.
The ferocious 17-way battle for the GOP nomination ends quietly Tuesday with the contest's final votes in five states (there's no GOP contest in North Dakota).
Technically, it's still not over on either side. Neither Clinton nor Trump will be their parties' official nominees until the formalities of the delegate votes at the parties' national conventions. Associated Press counts of Republican and Democratic convention delegates found enough support to assure Clinton and Trump their parties' nominations.
___
WHY IT MATTERS FOR CLINTON
This time, Clinton got the celebration she'd hoped for in 2008 — and by many accounts, long before that.
Emotional from the moment she stepped onstage at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Clinton made clear she considers the competition with Sanders over and delivered yet another broadside against Trump.
The speech was also notable for its timing: The event comes on the eight-year anniversary of Clinton's concession speech to then-Sen. Barack Obama, in which she noted her campaign hadn't breached "that highest, hardest glass ceiling" but that barrier now had "about 18 million cracks in it."
She's now assured of crossing a boundary as the first woman to win the presidential nomination of any party. How she proceeds toward Election Day begins with mending the stubborn split between her supporters and Sanders' — and depends significantly on how well she learns a bracing lesson he taught her: Young people, especially young women, flocked to him in the primaries.
The occasion also opens the gates to flashy endorsements. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi didn't wait for the votes Tuesday to announce her support. There's a bigger one on the horizon from President Obama, followed by joint appearances.
___
WHY IT MATTERS FOR TRUMP
The contests Tuesday give the billionaire mogul a high-profile way to pivot from several difficult days in which members of his own party nearly unanimously ordered him to cease his criticism of an American-born judge based on the jurist's ethnicity.
In his victory speech, Trump spoke of new beginnings.
"We're only getting started, and it's gonna be beautiful," Trump said at his golf course in Westchester County, N.Y., calling it an "honor" to lead the GOP. "I understand the responsibility of carrying the mantle."
"Tonight we close one chapter of history and we begin another."
He even spoke of issues — trade, economic prosperity and more.
His words were far closer to the tone and approach Republicans have been demanding in the weeks since Trump's remaining rivals surrendered the contest — a sign, perhaps, that he was starting to turn away from the combative and impulsive style that served him well in the primaries and toward fulfilling his promise to unite the fractured party.
For at least one high-profile Republican, it was too late: Sen. Mark Kirk, who is in a tough re-election fight in Illinois, rescinded his endorsement of Trump. House Speaker Paul Ryan kept his but called Trump's remarks about the judge "racist" and suggested that the mature thing for Trump to do would be to admit they were wrong.
That didn't happen. But instead of attacking his critics, Trump offered signs he was turning a corner.
___
CONTESTED REPUBLICAN CONVENTION?
Nope.
Regardless of how many GOP politicians come out against Donald Trump, the math says they can't contest his nomination.
With his victories Tuesday, Trump now has at least 1,239 bound delegates who are required by party rules to vote for him at the convention. It takes 1,237 delegates to win the GOP nomination.
Trump also has public support from 95 unbound delegates, but they could possibly change their minds and switch to another candidate.
Several Republicans in Congress are criticizing Trump for saying a federal judge could not preside fairly over a case involving Trump University because of his Mexican heritage.
GOP Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona said Trump's comments could spur talk of a challenge at the convention.
___
WHAT ABOUT BERNIE?
Sanders insisted Tuesday that "I think we've got a shot" at winning California and persuading Democratic superdelegates, who can vote for any candidate, to switch from Clinton to him. Superdelegates who were counted in Clinton's total told the AP they were unequivocally supporting her.
Sanders told NBC Tuesday, "I'm going to do everything that I can to fight for the working class for this country, for the low-income people."
Sanders planned to travel to Vermont on Wednesday and head to Washington Thursday for meetings and a rally.
His campaign, meanwhile sent out a fundraising email Tuesday evening urging supporters to help him finish strong June 14 in the District of Columbia contest.
And Tuesday's results contained good news for Sanders: He defeated Clinton in North Dakota.
__
IN HOUSE ELECTION NEWS ...
In North Carolina Tuesday, Rep. Renee Ellmers, endorsed by Trump, became the first Republican incumbent ousted in this year's primaries. Rep. George Holding defeated her in a contest resulting from redrawn district lines.
___
AND IN SENATE ELECTION NEWS....
California is poised — barring a surprise — to send two Democratic women running for Senate to the November ballot: Attorney General Kamala Harris and Rep. Loretta Sanchez of Orange County.
If the trends hold, it would be the first time since the start of direct Senate elections a century ago that a Republican has not appeared on a California general election ballot for the U.S. Senate, says Claremont McKenna College political scientist Jack Pitney. Republicans in the state account for only 27 percent of registered voters.