Before the polls closed, Cruz vowed he was fighting to win IN – and he also pledged to continue his campaign as long as he had a “path to victory”.
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“Indiana is very important, because if I win that’s the end of it”.
“We gave it everything we’ve got, but the voters chose another path”, said Cruz, whose withdrawal leaves the low-polling John Kasich as Trump’s sole challenger.
Trump’s candidacy has galvanized the GOP, bringing in voters – especially in regions like the Rust Belt – that might not otherwise be attracted to the party’s message.
Donald Trump will collect at least 45 delegates for his victory in IN, putting him on a solid path to clinch the nomination and avoid a contested convention.
Last Wednesday, the Texas senator made another rare announcement.
Had he succeeded in his quest, Cruz would have been the first USA president of Hispanic descent, although he often downplayed his heritage on the campaign trail, instead, touting the need for tougher immigration laws, for a border wall along the border with Mexico, protecting gun rights, repealing President Barack Obama’s health care law and instituting a flat tax.
GOP elites now face the long-feared reality of Trump as an outsider nominee who will lead them into the fall campaign after splitting the party, overturning establishment and conservative power bases and alienating key general election voters with incendiary rhetoric. Increasingly, he would modify his travel schedule to go where data showed there might be pockets of untapped supporters.
Mr Trump was on track to take well over 50 per cent of the vote, eclipsing Senator Cruz, while Ohio Governor Mr Kasich was running a distant third.
Mr Trump also beat Mr Cruz among born-again or evangelical Christians, 49 per cent to 44 per cent, a voting bloc that Mr Cruz had courted intensely and is more naturally aligned with him than Mr Trump. Ted Cruz is ending his presidential campaign, his campaign manager Jeff Roe reportedly told Politico. Cruz has indicated that he will stay in the Republican race even if he loses Indiana.
A recent NBC/Wall Street Journal poll found that Trump held a big 15-point lead over the Texas senator. Lindsey Graham among them – but won only minimal support from his Senate colleagues.
“His false, cheap, meaningless comments every day indicate his desperation to get attention and willingness to say anything to do so”, said Catherine Frazier, Cruz’s campaign spokeswoman in a statement. Marco Rubio disparaging the Bible.
Following the victory, Trump claimed victory with one last shot at his chief challenger Ted Cruz.
Trump also questioned whether Cruz’s birth in Canada disqualified him to run for president, frequently threatening to sue him over the issue.
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Indeed, Tuesday’s contest in IN could well spell the end of Cruz’s campaign if Trump wins the key state, where 57 delegates are at stake.
