So much for helping Sen. Ted Cruz win Indiana. After Gov. John Kasich and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz joined an alliance Monday to block Donald Trump, and the former pledged to stay in the Hoosier state, the Ohio governor urged voters there to support him no matter what.
“I never told them not to vote for me,” Kasich said in Pennsylvania. “They should vote for me.”
As he explained, he only agreed not to allocate “resources” there.
Adding to the mixed messages was the fact that Kasich planned to travel to Indianapolis for a private fundraiser on Tuesday despite the cancellation of two scheduled public rallies in Indianapolis and Noblesville.
Kasich made the remarks about 13 hours after his campaign announced a deal that would give rival Ted Cruz a “clear path” in Indiana, where a winner-take-all primary is next week. In return, Cruz would give Kasich a clear path in Oregon and New Mexico to prevent front-runner Donald Trump from gaining the necessary number of delegates to seal the GOP nomination before this summer’s national convention.
“It’s not a big deal,” Kasich said of the agreement, which he described as an acknowledgment of the reality of the campaign. Kasich has won only one primary, in his home state of Ohio, but has insisted he could win the Republican nomination at a contentious convention.
Cruz, meanwhile, on Monday touted the agreement as “big news” and said Kasich’s withdrawal from the state is actually “good for the men and women of Indiana.”
“It’s good for the country that we have a clear and direct choice,” he told reporters.
However, not all experts are convinced the plan will succeed.
“The question is how effective it will be,” said GOP strategist Dan Judy. Hill“Will the average Kasich supporter bear to vote for Cruz? Will the average Cruz supporter bear to vote for Kasich? We just don’t know.”
With reports that Kasich is apparently still trying to urge voters in Indiana to support him, they may not make such a arduous choice after all.
Indiana will hold its primary election on May 3, with the winner receiving 30 delegates immediately, while the winner of each of the state’s nine congressional districts will be eligible to win three additional delegates.
