GOP frontrunner Donald Trump, with the help of Ohio Gov. John Kasich, prevented Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) from slating his preferred delegates in Michigan over the weekend.
“The Texas senator’s campaign ran eight delegates for eight committee spots and lost every one, alleging it was “double-crossed” by Kasich supporters,” CNN reports. “The Michigan delegation picked one Trump supporter, Matt Hall, and one Kasich supporter, Judi Schwalbach, for the two seats on the powerful rules committee. The Cruz campaign lost votes for both seats.”
This maneuvering becomes important if no candidate reaches the 1,237 delegate threshold to clinch the nomination on the first vote at the Republican National Convention in July. The delegates become unbound on the second ballot and can cast a vote for their personal favorite.
“The Cruz campaign tried a takeover and they failed miserably,” Kasich’s Michigan delegate director Jeff Timmer said. “It backfired and they ended up with nothing. There’s been all these reports about how they’re out-organizing everybody. Not here.”
Until Michigan, it appears the Cruz campaign has successfully swept nearly half a dozen states, slating delegates favorable to the Texas senator.
Despite Michigan, Cruz slated delegates favorable to him in Colorado and Iowa over the weekend. Cruz racked up at least 30 favorable delegates out of Colorado’s 37 throughout the state and district conventions, which wrapped up Saturday. Cruz also swept the delegates in Iowa on Saturday. A source close to Breitbart News in Iowa said he’s never seen such poor organization, referencing the Trump campaign.
Jason Noble, political reporter at the Des Moines Register, posted about a last-minute email from the Trump campaign on Twitter, noting the lack of preparation: “In email blast 15 hours before Iowa conventions, Trump campaign asks supporters to turn them into a ‘Trump rally.’”
Given the reports of poor organization by the Trump campaign in Iowa, Cruz was able to grab 11 out of the 12 Iowa GOP delegates on Saturday, which were selected at the state party’s district conventions.
Another Trump campaign email, reportedly out in the state of Washington, shows the campaign isn’t prepared there as well, missing an important deadline notification.
“Donald Trump’s team is encouraging its supporters in Washington state to sign up to be a potential Trump delegate. The only problem: The campaign’s local crew sent its email on Friday — two days after the filing deadline to appear on the printed ballot in Saturday’s conventions and caucuses,” Politico reports.
In Louisiana and North Dakota, Cruz has also swept the delegate selections.
Breitbart News previously reported the Cruz campaign ground efforts are also underway in Missouri, South Dakota and Georgia to stack the deck with delegates who also support Cruz.
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