In what is being hailed as a pivotal day in the Republican primary season, former President Donald Trump aims to secure a Super Tuesday victory over his sole challenger, Nikki Haley. As 15 states hold Republican contests today, Trump seeks to solidify his dominance despite facing a litany of criminal charges.

Having swept all but one of the previous contests, Trump has managed to narrow down the sprawling Republican field to just two candidates. While he cannot formally clinch the nomination with Tuesday's results, another strong performance would undoubtedly increase the pressure on Haley to reconsider her campaign.

Tuesday's Republican contests hold significant weight, as they will allocate over one-third of the Republican delegates, accounting for more than 70% of the total needed to secure the nomination. If Trump secures a third consecutive nomination, it would set the stage for a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden in the upcoming November election.

On the other side of the spectrum, Biden is expected to win the Democratic contests comfortably on Super Tuesday. However, activists opposed to Biden's Israel policy have called on Muslim Americans and progressives to vote "uncommitted" in Minnesota as a form of protest.

Haley, a former U.N. ambassador under Trump, has faced increasing scrutiny regarding the longevity of her long-shot campaign, especially after her loss in her home state of South Carolina a little over a week ago. Notably, her campaign has not scheduled any public events on Super Tuesday or beyond.

According to poll tracking website 538, Trump remains ahead of Haley in every Super Tuesday state where public polling data is available. Despite this, Haley's allies believe there is a small chance of victory in states like Virginia, Massachusetts, and Vermont, where wealthy and college-educated voters tend to support her candidacy.

In a separate interview, Trump expressed his focus on Biden, confidently stating, "We're going to win every state tonight." While Trump plans to hold an event at his Florida resort to mark the occasion, Biden has no separate campaign events scheduled.

Pop megastar Taylor Swift took to Instagram to encourage her fans to vote, although her message may have been limited due to a widespread outage affecting the social media platform and Facebook, both owned by Meta Platforms Inc.

In addition to the presidential race, voters are also casting ballots in down-ticket races, including two crucial contests in California to determine potential successors to the late Democrat Dianne Feinstein in the Senate and recently deposed Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy in the House of Representatives.

Trump's advisers anticipate eliminating Haley mathematically no later than March 19, by which time two-thirds of the states will have voted. It is worth noting that Trump's first criminal trial is scheduled to commence six days later in New York, where he faces charges of falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments during his 2016 presidential run.

Haley's challenge has shed light on potential vulnerabilities for Trump in a general election. By achieving 40% support in some state contests, Haley argues that independents and moderate Republicans harbor concerns about a second Trump term.

However, opinions among Republican voters remain divided. Mac Seidel, a retired IT worker from Southlake, Texas, who attended a Haley rally on Monday night, described her as a solid alternative to Trump, stating, "She's supporting the moderates out there." Seidel, previously a Trump supporter, now finds the former president's conduct surrounding the assault on the U.S. Capitol and the numerous criminal charges he faces unacceptable.

On the other hand, Katherine Meredith, a 65-year-old homemaker from Huntington Beach, California, who voted for Trump twice, expressed her disapproval of Haley's approach, accusing her of dividing the Republican Party. According to Meredith, many of Haley's stances align with those of the Democratic Party, causing a significant rift within the party.

As Trump attempts to secure his position as the Republican nominee for the third consecutive time, the outcome of Super Tuesday will undoubtedly shape the future of the GOP and set the stage for a fierce battle between Trump and Biden in the November election.