New Hampshire takeaways: Trump's path becomes clearer. So does the prospect of a rematch with Biden.

WASHINGTON (AP) — This time, New Hampshire didn't surprise.

Instead, its famously fickle voters stuck to the script of delivering a resounding ratification of the front-runner, Donald Trump, the former president. His victory over Nikki Haley was of scope that it cemented his hold on core Republican voters and substantially reduced the chances of any challenger overtaking him.

Never before has a presidential candidate won the first two contests on the primary nomination calendar — as Trump has now done — and failed to emerge as the party’s general election nominee, substantially increasing the already quite likely prospect of a rematch between him and President Joe Biden.