Sanders Defeats Clinton In Granite State

Hillary Clinton has conceded defeat to Bernie Sanders in the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary.

The former Secretary of State congratulated Mr Sanders on his victory, but promised supporters she would continue to "fight for every vote in every state".

Mr Sanders' win will be seen as a significant boost for the self-described democratic socialist, who was considered a long shot when he entered the White House race.

The Vermont Senator , who held a commanding lead in New Hampshire opinion polls for months, was projected to win his neighbouring state within minutes of the polls closing on Tuesday night.

On the Republican side, Donald Trump eased to victory over his Republican rivals after holding a similar lead in the months leading up to the primary.

In his victory speech to supporters, Mr Sanders said: "We won because of your energy."

He added: "Together we have sent a message that will echo from Wall to Street to Washington, from Maine to California.

"And that is that the government of our great country belongs to all of the people and not just a handful of wealthy campaign contributors and their Super PACs."

Meanwhile, Mrs Clinton's camp was already looking ahead to next week's Nevada caucus and beyond, saying in a memo to staffers that the Democratic nomination will "very likely be won in March".

In the memo titled "March Matters", campaign manager Robby Mook said "we believe that Hillary Clinton is well positioned to build a strong - potentially insurmountable - delegate lead next month".

Mrs Clinton and Mr Sanders will get little rest after New Hampshire.

The candidates are set to square off in a televised debate on Thursday night in Wisconsin.

:: Road To The Nomination: US Primary Timetable

They will then turn their attention to the Nevada caucuses on 20 February and the South Carolina primary on 27 February.

Mrs Clinton currently holds significant leads in both states, based on an average of opinion polls.