Ted Cruz and John Kasich are teaming against Donald Trump through a deal to divide three states in hopes of defeating Trump in each and denying him delegates to claim the Republican nomination without a convention fight.
The Texas senator and Ohio governor announced an unprecedented deal in which Kasich will not contest Indiana while Cruz will steer clear of Oregon and New Mexico to maximize chances to beating Trump in each state and denying him the 1,237 delegates he needs to secure the Republican nomination that he seems sure to lose if he can’t claim it on the first ballot at the Republican National Convention in July.
“Having Donald Trump at the top of the ticket in November would be a sure disaster for Republicans,” Cruz campaign manager Jeff Roe said in statement Sunday night. “To ensure that we nominate a Republican who can unify the Republican Party and win in November, our campaign will focus its time and resources in Indiana and in turn clear the path for Gov. Kasich to compete in Oregon and New Mexico, and we would hope that allies of both campaigns would follow our lead.”
The Kasich campaign also released a statement Sunday, making clear the two campaigns cut a deal.
“Due to the fact that the Indiana primary is winner-take-all statewide and by congressional district, keeping Trump from winning a plurality in Indiana is critical to keeping him under 1237 bound delegates before Cleveland, said Kasich campaign chief strategist John Weaver. “We are very comfortable with our delegate position in Indiana already, and given the current dynamics of the primary there, we will shift our campaign’s resources West and give the Cruz campaign a clear path in Indiana.”
“In turn, we will focus our time and resources in New Mexico and Oregon, both areas that are structurally similar to the Northeast politically, where Gov. Kasich is performing well,” Weaver added. “We would expect independent third-party groups to do the same and honor the commitments made by the Cruz and Kasich campaigns.”
The reference to third party groups was a strong suggestion to nominally indepedent anti-Trump super PACs to adhere to Cruz-Kasich pact.
The #NeverTrump movement seemed happy to comply. One such group, quickly signaled enthusiastic agreement.
“Whether you support Ted Cruz or John Kasich, a second ballot at the Convention is imperative to stopping Donald Trump. We’re happy to see the Kasich and Cruz campaigns strategically using their resources to deny Trump delegates where they are in the strongest position to do so,” #NeverTrump senior advisor Rory Cooper said in a statement urging #NeverTrump supporters in Indiana to spread the word and vote for Cruz, and vote for Kasich in Oregon and New Mexico.
The Kasich campaign later confirmed to Fox News that it had canceled two campaign events in Indiana scheduled for Tuesday as part of the deal.
It is mathematically impossible for either Cruz or Kasich clinch the nomination before the GOP convention in July. But Trump still has a chance to secure the delegates to secure the nomination before the convention if he wins big in states still set to vote.
The best bet for the billionaire businessman’s two remaining rivals is to block Trump from earning the requisite 1,237 delegates on the first ballot. That would result in a contested convention where formerly pledged delegates will have the freedom to pick whichever candidate they choose in successive ballots.
Following a weekend in which he stayed off television, Trump erupted Sunday night with capital letter-heavy tweets attacking the bargain by rivals he called “mathematically dead “and totally desperate”
Wow, just announced that Lyin’ Ted and Kasich are going to collude in order to keep me from getting the Republican nomination. DESPERATION!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 25, 2016
Lyin’ Ted and Kasich are mathematically dead and totally desperate. Their donors & special interest groups are not happy with them. Sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 25, 2016
Dan Scavino, the Trump campaign’s social media director, weighed in too with a tweet denouncing the deal.
“Two losing candidates joining in an attempt to stop @realDonaldTrump,” Scavino wrote. “Americans are so tired of you POLITICIANS!!!”
While polls show Trump ready to prevail in Tuesday’s primaries in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, where 172 delegates are up for grabs, Cruz and Kasich are hoping the Texas senator can deny Trump a victory in Indiana’s winner-take-all contest on May 3.
In Indiana, polls show Cruz within striking distance of Trump, especially given a potential bump from Kasich’s supporters. A RealClearPolitics average of polls shows Trump leading with 39.3 percent support, while Cruz has 33 percent and Kasich 19.3.
According to the latest tally from the Associated Press, Trump leads the field with 845 delegates. Cruz has 559 delegates while Kasich lags behind with 148 delegates.
