Ted Cruz won the Wisconsin presidential primary on Tuesday, dealing a blow to front-runner Donald Trump’s chances of clinching the Republican nomination ahead of the party’s July convention. Winning Wisconsin would give Sanders a fresh dose of momentum and perhaps new credibility for his claim that he can catch Clinton in the delegate count and win the Democratic nomination. If the results are that close, the candidates will receive roughly the same number of delegates since Democratic delegates are awarded proportionally.
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Heading into Wisconsin, Clinton had 1,243 delegates to Sanders’ 980 based on primaries and caucuses. The state-by-state nominating contests are choosing delegates to the parties’ national conventions that will select the presidential nominees. Cruz appears to have the best shot at Wisconsin’s 42 delegates, but even if he takes them all he will remain 720 delegates short of the nomination and more than 200 behind Trump.
Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with the governor and has joined Cruz in calling for Kasich to end his campaign.
The next major GOP primary is NY on April 19, where Trump has a large lead in the polls in what is considered his home state. Clinton represented the state in the Senate from 2001 to 2009, and her campaign is headquartered in Brooklyn. So far, Trump has won 48 percent of the delegates awarded.
Both Democratic and Republican primary voters will head to the polls in Wisconsin Tuesday to help decide how the 2016 presidential race should move forward. With 924 delegates up for grabs, Trump would have to win 54 percent of the delegates outstanding to lock up the nomination. On top of that, the Clinton campaign announced Monday that it raised $29.5 million last month for her primary campaign – about $15 million less than Sanders’ haul for the month. Trump entered Tuesday with a 737 to 475 delegate advantage over Cruz.
Melania Trump took the stage to speak at a rally in Milwaukee, in a week that commentators say has been Mr Trump’s worst since the campaign began. “You think you can push me around and get away with it, you’re wrong”.
Mrs Clinton still holds a sizeable lead and most analysts say she will eventually become the Democratic nominee despite her recent losses.
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Cruz prevailed in an early organizational test in North Dakota, scooping up endorsements from delegates who were selected at the party’s state convention over the weekend. Cruz staffers inaccurately told voters that Ben Carson had dropped out of the race, and the campaign sent out an official-looking “voter violation” mailer encouraging a vote for Cruz.
