Ted Cruz pulled out a strategic victory at Saturday’s Arizona Republican Party convention, nailing down a large majority of delegates to the national convention amid cheating accusations from backers of businessman Donald Trump.
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Panzar said that Conway was trying to make his way to the (Hyatt) hotel where Trump spoke to the California Republican convention.
Outside the convention, some people jumped on top of cars and had angry exchanges with Trump supporters coming and going from the building.
Trump carried the state last week with 60.8% of the vote, capturing all 16 of the delegates up for grabs. Mr Trump, the Republican presidential nominee frontrunner, had to enter the besieged venue in the city of Burlingame by the back door. This means that every delegate bound to Trump on the first ballot has been hand chosen by the real estate mogul’s campaign. But the prospect of Donald Trump clinching the nomination in the Golden State has scrambled the party’s political fault lines in advance of its pivotal June primary, forging unexpected alliances that blur those longstanding divisions.
Each state sets its own rules and may bind delegates past a second floor vote.
Harmeet Dhillon, vice chairwoman of the California Republican Party, said this weekend’s convention has been an opportunity for the candidates to build relationships and “convince reliable Republicans who have the means to go to the RNC convention to be on their slate and hopefully go back to their districts to influence voters in their districts”.
California is the biggest prize left, with 172 Republican delegates up for grabs.
Trump supporters cried foul over the voting process for 28 statewide delegates, where attendees used an electronic system to cast their votes via tablet, smartphone and computer. The state will parcel out most of its delegates to the winners of each of its 53 congressional districts, with only 13 going to the statewide victor. Three more represent the party as members of the Republican National Committee. Anyone eligible to attend may also run to be a delegate. She said she likes Cruz the least because of his highly conservative stances on social issues.
“Donald Trump represents the vile underbelly of American democracy by where black people are both disenfranchised and disregarded”, commented Robbie Clark, an organizer with Black Lives Matter Bay Area. “It ain’t a touchdown until it’s a touchdown”, Fiorina said, adding: “I’m sorry, you can not just throw an “R” on your jersey and say you believe what our party stands for”.
But in a brief meeting with reporters, Kasich said Trump stirs up anger and resentment and would get “crushed” in November.
A slate of supporters of Sen. Cruz offered a almost identical slate of candidates as John Kasich backers, and the combined votes led to a win.
Kersti Buchanan, 70, a retired translator and party activist from Mendocino County who backs Kasich, was shocked at all of Trump’s supporters – and by the candidate’s speech itself.
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“The strongest support was for Cruz”, said Randy Blair, chairman of the Republican Party in Webb County along the Texas-Mexico border, which narrowly supported Trump during the primary.
