Frontrunners Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump won crucial victories in the race for presidential nomination on Tuesday
Clinton and Trump won their respective party primaries in the key state of Florida, moving a step closer to their bid to secure party nomination in the November election.
Clinton secured more than 65 percent of votes in the crucial state while her nearest rival Bernie Sanders won 33 percent.
On the Republican side, Trump's decisive win in Florida threw rival Marco Rubio out of the race.
The Republican Senator from Florida quit the race after Trump won 45 percent of votes in his home state, putting the controversial party outsider on course to a probable nomination.
Four other key states - Ohio, Missouri, North Carolina and Illinois -- also held primaries on Tuesday but Florida was the biggest prize.
Clinton was projected to win North Carolina as early results came in. The latest projections showed Trump was leading in Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina as well. Early projections also showed Clinton led in Illinois and Missouri too.
After failing to live pt to his pre-poll claim to win the state, Marco Rubio said he was suspending his 2016 campaign.
"After tonight, it is clear that while we are on the right side, this year, we will not be on the winning side," the 44-yar-old Cuban American said.
For Clinton, the victory in Florida will help her stay ahead of Sanders in the race for delegates. She went to the Tuesday primaries with 1,235 delegates, compared with 580 for Sanders.
According to Florida rules, the 246 Democratic delegates will be allotted in proportion to the votes secured by the candidates.
As more results trickled in, reports said Clinton was projected to win Ohio's Democratic primary while Republican John Kasich was winning his home state, stopping Trump in his tracks.
