Trump wins Florida, N. Carolina in major blow to Clinton: networks

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during a rally at the Sioux City Convention Center in Sioux City, Iowa on November 6, 2016. Donald Trump barnstorms five states Sunday while Hillary Clinton implores her most fervent supporters to get to the polls, in a frenetic final 48-hour dash to the US presidential election. / AFP PHOTO / Mandel NGAN
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks during a rally at the Sioux City Convention Center in Sioux City, Iowa on November 6, 2016.
Donald Trump barnstorms five states Sunday while Hillary Clinton implores her most fervent supporters to get to the polls, in a frenetic final 48-hour dash to the US presidential election. / AFP PHOTO / 

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Republican billionaire Donald Trump added key battleground states Florida and North Carolina to his haul of state wins in the race for the White House, US television networks projected — dealing a crushing blow to rival Hillary Clinton.

Winning one or both of the southern US states was seen as critical to both candidates, but Trump needed Florida — the Sunshine State — to have a viable path to the magic number of 270 electoral college votes.

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