the presidential candidates are laser-focused on south carolina right now, with the republican primary coming up on feb. 20, and the democratic primary on feb. 27.









the latest surveys show republican donald trump and democrat hillary clinton as the clear frontrunners. but the other candidates are waging fierce battles for second place.









heading into south carolina, trump already has a solid lead.<u+00a0>the latest real clear politics average of recent polls shows the billionaire with 36 percent support, compared to about 20 percent for his nearest competitor, sen. ted cruz, r-texas.









trump hopes to build on the momentum from his new hampshire win.









"if we win here after winning so big in new hampshire, we will make america great again -- that i can tell you," trump said.









what's extraordinary about his new hampshire win is the breadth of his victory. trump won in virtually every category, capturing both men and women in the city and the countryside. he won voters of all ages, and both conservative and moderates, and in every issue group.









meanwhile, cruz says it's clear he's the main challenger to trump.









"one of the most important conclusions coming out of these first two states is that the candidate who can beat donald trump is me," cruz said.









polls show sen. marco rubio, r-fla., and former florida gov. jeb bush in third and fourth place right now.









and as of wednesday, two gop candidates are no longer in the race: former hewlett packard ceo carly fiorina and new jersey gov. chris christie dropped out after weak showings in new hampshire.









the democratic race is also hotly contested. bernie sanders crushed clinton in new hampshire, but she leads him in south carolina, with 62 percent compared to his 32 percent.









clinton has acknowledged that she must figure out how to reach young voters, especially women. in new hampshire, sanders pulled in more than 80 percent of women voters under 30. now she's reaching out to them.









"you may not support me, but i support you," clinton said.









sanders is also threatening clinton with an impressive fundraising machine <u+2013> and he's invested heavily in nevada, which holds its democratic caucus on feb. 20.









he's clearly going after the minority vote, but so is clinton.<u+00a0>this week, the congressional black caucus pac voted to endorse the democratic frontrunner.









if the polls are correct, clinton and trump should easily win in south carolina.<u+00a0>but the other candidates are fighting to catch up and march is coming <u+2013> when more than 20 states will cast their votes.
trump, clinton head into sc with fierce competition on their heels
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