House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy offered advice to the three remaining Republican presidential candidates ahead of his home state California’s June 7 GOP primary.
“Talk about the issues,” McCarthy told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren Tuesday, but specifically how to solve the Golden State’s water crisis.
The Bakersfield congressman also said it was imperative for Donald Trump, Sen. Ted Cruz and Gov. John Kasich to run organized campaigns in his state if they want to lock down the 172 delegates up for grabs because of the state party’s complicated election process.
California has 53 congressional districts, which offer three delegates to the candidate who wins each territory and an additional 13 for the overall winner. Despite varying conservative populations within the districts, each of them will award candidates with the same number of delegates, making it critical for candidates to hit as many of those localities as possible.
McCarthy said Trump and Cruz should first focus on winning the 57 delegates in Indiana on May 3, which he believes will set the stage for California’s primary in June.
If Trump wins among Hoosiers, Cruz would have to increasingly focus on winning in California. It’s the first time McCarthy says his late-primary state has ever played such an important role during the party’s nomination process.
