The hotly contested primary was won by businessman Donald Trump by a margin of 0.21% over Texas Senator Ted Cruz.

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon signed SB892 in 2014 to move the state's presidential primary contest to March.

[2] Despite an early victory by Ted Cruz in the Iowa caucuses, Donald Trump was seen as making steady progress towards the Republican nomination at the time.

Missouri was considered an important state due to its "winner-take-most" nature, which could allow Trump to accrue a large net gain of delegates with a small change in the popular vote.

[9] Following the March 15 contests, Marco Rubio suspended his campaign, largely due to a poor performance in Florida.