Super Tuesday: Important but not decisive day means the race is still on

Donald Trump maintained his status as the clear Republican front runner and as a political phenomenon. He won in a wide range of states, from affluent Massachusetts to struggling Alabama.

Super Tuesday richly rewarded the billionaire. He held a press conference in Florida, taunting his rivals and looking ahead to a fight with Hillary.

Not so fast, screamed his rivals.

For this key date in the election calendar failed to serve another purpose. It did not narrow the field.

Overnight, Ted Cruz survived by winning in his home state of Texas and neighbouring Oklahoma.

Marco Rubio fights on - just. He won in Minnesota, a crucial success that ends the narrative that the Florida Senator is a serial loser.

So the Republican battle is set to continue for the next few weeks.

For the Democrats, too, the race is not over. Hillary Clinton won big in major states, but it was not a knock-out blow. Bernie Sanders scored victories in Vermont, Colorado, Oklahoma and Minnesota.

So the big night in American politics proved important but not decisive.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are still most likely to face each other in the November Presidential election.

But in this roller-coaster campaign it is not guaranteed. The Republican Establishment is readying itself for a last-ditch effort to dethrone Trump, the man they regard as a political fraud who is hijacking the party.

It's been an ugly and dark Republican campaign, full of personal abuse and petty debates.

And yet, wait for it: The contest is about to get even more angry and acrimonious.