Kerry cruises to victory in South

WASHINGTON - John Kerry moved closer to formally clinching the United States Democratic presidential nomination yesterday with easy victories in four Southern states, including the crucial November battleground of Florida.

The Massachusetts senator, looking to challenge President George W. Bush in a region that has not been friendly to Democrats in recent elections, swept to easy wins in Florida, Mississippi, Texas and Louisiana.

Kerry effectively locked up the right to face Bush last week when he drove his last major rival from the race, and the victories put him on the verge of making it official by capturing a majority of the delegates to July's nominating convention.

"This nation is demanding, more than ever before, leadership that takes us in a new direction," Kerry told supporters in Chicago, Illinois, which next week holds the primary that could put him over the top.

"George Bush will not take us in that direction. I will."

Kerry rolled up more than 75 per cent of the votes in Florida and Mississippi over rivals who have dropped out of the race but remained on the ballots and over two remaining minor challengers, civil rights activist Al Sharpton and Ohio representative Dennis Kucinich.

Kerry, already locked in an escalating general election struggle with Bush, slammed the President's economic and foreign policies and ridiculed Bush's claim to "steady leadership", describing him as a "stubborn" leader.

Earlier in the day Bush, without mentioning Kerry by name, decried "economic isolationists" who would weaken the US economy.

"There are economic isolationists in our country who believe we should separate ourselves from the rest of the world by raising up barriers and closing off markets. They're wrong," Bush said in a clear jab at Kerry.

Kerry has called for a review of US trade pacts and enforcement of labour and environmental standards.

In his victory speech in Chicago, Kerry said Bush could not run on "any of the issues that really define the quality of life in America".

"This President doesn't have a record to run on; he has a record to run away from."

At stake yesterday were 435 delegates to the Democratic convention, enough to put Kerry within about 100 delegates of the 2162 needed to mathematically wrap up the nomination.

The strong showing in the South was crucial to Kerry. He hopes to improve in November on the Southern showing by Democratic presidential nominee Al Gore in 2000, who was shut out in the region by Bush despite hailing from Tennessee.

Bush's race

* United States President George W. Bush has wrapped up the nearly nonexistent race for the Republican presidential nomination.

* He pocketed every delegate up for grabs in the four Southern states that held primary elections yesterday.

* Bush had 1309 delegates, according to an AP count, eclipsing the 1255 needed for the nomination.

* Bush also captured delegates in Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana, one of the few states where he faced token opposition.

* No other Republican candidate for president has won any delegates to the party's nominating convention, to be held in New York in late August .

- REUTERS