Despite Donald Trump’s string of victories on Tuesday, he has to do better in upcoming contests to claim the Republican nomination for president before the party’s national convention this summer.
Ted Cruz is emerging as the candidate who could stop him — with a little help from Marco Rubio.
A close look at the delegate math illustrates Trump’s problem. So far Trump has won only 46 percent of the delegates, even though he has won 10 of the first 15 contests. It takes an outright majority of delegates to win the nomination.
On Tuesday, Cruz muted Trump’s delegate gains by winning delegate-rich Texas, which is Cruz’s home state.
The delegate math illustrates the importance of the March 15 primaries in Florida and Ohio in which the statewide winner gets all the delegates.
Delegate math
- It takes 1,237 delegates to win the Republican nomination for president.
- Donald Trump has won 316 delegates so far.
- Sen. Ted Cruz has 226 delegates.
- Sen. Marco Rubio has 106 delegates.
- Ohio Gov. John Kasich has 25.
- Ben Carson has eight.
- There will be 2,472 delegates going to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July.
- There are 1,791 delegates left.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
