Hillary Clinton wins Nevada caucuses

Hillary Clinton gives a speech after the Nevada Democratic caucus results

US presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has narrowly won the Nevada caucuses in the Democratic race for presidential nominee.

She is leading with 52% of the vote over her rival Bernie Sanders' 48%.

She had been hoping for a big victory in Nevada where she is popular with Hispanic and minority voters.

The Republican primary is also under way in South Carolina, where frontrunner Donald Trump is trying to fend off Texas Senator Ted Cruz.

The votes could be key ahead of the "Super Tuesday" round on 1 March.

On that day, about a dozen states will choose their Republican and Democratic contenders for the 8 November presidential election, with about a quarter of all nominating delegates up for grabs.

Mrs Clinton, who won Iowa but was beaten convincingly in New Hampshire by Mr Sanders, has already declared victory in a tweet, thanking people who voted for her, saying "this is your win".

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The former secretary of state was expected to win Nevada in double digits several weeks ago, but the Vermont senator appears to have performed better than expected with the heavy minority population in the state.

Elsewhere, in South Carolina, Republican supporters are choosing who they want to see run for the White House in a vote that is due to end at 19:00 local time (00:00 GMT).

The leading Republican pair split the first two rounds - Mr Trump winning in New Hampshire, a week after Mr Cruz had triumphed in Iowa.

Prior to "Super Tuesday", Republicans are holding a Nevada caucus on Tuesday and the Democrats a South Carolina primary on 27 February.

These rounds could be crucial in particular for Republican candidates who have been lagging behind the leading pair.