By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Tuesday, April 26, New York City businessman and reality TV star Donald won five state primaries by shockingly large margins after remaining rivals Ohio Governor John Kasich and US Senator Ted Cruz announced their plans to coordinate their resources to block the billionaire from getting the 1237 delegates needed to win the nomination at the Republican convention in Cleveland. Even though he himself had no mathematical path to achieving victory, Senator Cruz announced that he would fight on and that Indiana would be his firewall. He even held a press conference in Indiana to announce that businesswoman Carly Fiorina would be his Vice Presidential nominee.
It was not to be. On Tuesday, May 3 record numbers of GOP Primary voters in Indiana gave Trump a crushing victory. Trump received a stunning 54 percent of the votes in a three person field and all 45 delegates from the Midwestern state to bring his total to 1041.
Sen. Cruz bowed to the inevitable and ended his campaign for President.
Alabama Republican Party Chairman Terry Lathan said in a release to social media: “Cruz suspends campaign. Thank you to Senator Ted Cruz and Carly Fiorina for loving our nation. America needs us all now. #NeverHillary.”
The Alabama Republican Party retweeted a message from Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus: “Donald J. Trump will be presumptive GOP nominee, we all need to unite and focus on defeating Hillary Clinton. #NeverClinton”
Alabama Republican Party Primary voters went for Donald Trump on March 1 by a wide margin.
Trump supporters in Alabama were ecstatic at the news that the nomination battle is for all practical purposes….over.
Deanna Frankowski told the Alabama Political Reporter “I am very happy.” It is time for all of us to come together. We can all agree that whatever candidate we might have preferred in the primary, we can not have another four years of Barack Obama’s policies or worse. The next President likely will appoint two, three, or even four justices to the US Supreme Court and we don’t need them appointed by Hillary.
Former State Representative Perry Hooper Sr. said on Facebook, “UNITY! Donald Trump has brought many new voters to the Republican Party. It’s time now for all Republicans to join hands so that we will beat Hillary and Make AMERICA Great Again!”
Cindy Monaghan-Holcomb said, “OMGoodness! What a night! I have grown so accustomed to my candidate losing that I don’t quite know what to do with myself! Thank you to all my friends and family who have called and messaged! The last time that happened was the day after Obama won his second term and they were calling to console me. Wow! What a difference a few years can make! Whew! It has been a bumpy ride! #MakeAmericaGreatAgain!”
Ohio Governor John Kasich has refused to concede and is vowing to fight on to the convention in an attempt to thwart Trump from reaching the 1237 delegates needed to be the nominee.
Mike Williams wrote, “The American people are tired of the establishment GOP as it WAS. We don’t like them not standing up against healthcare, pipeline, and other things they just rolled over on. We are tired of the John McCain’s and John Boehner games with the left. In fact we are tired of the leftist Supreme court legislating from the bench, that is NOT constitutional. YALL created TRUMP. You Cruz folks can get mad if you like but will you vote for Hillary? Not voting is a vote for Hillary….We are tired of the status quo….We will get more folks out to vote in November….Kasich, quit being an idiot, You won’t be anything but disappointed.”
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meanwhile was upset in Indiana by US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont). Clinton has 2,165 delegates to Sanders 1,357. 2,383 are needed to win the Democratic Party nomination.