Ohio Gov. John Kasich gained 66 delegates in Ohio.
After winning the Ohio Republican primary Tuesday night and gaining 66 more delegates, Ohio Governor and presidential candidate John Kasich thanked supporters during a rally in his home state.
Not everyone in the Cleveland suburb crowd was a fan, though, and his speech was interrupted by someone who appeared to be a supporter of businessman and candidate Donald Trump.
“Well, you know when you went to college in the 1970s, you appreciate a good peaceful protest every once in a while,” Kasich said in response to the disruption.
Kasich won about 47 percent of the vote statewide, leaving Trump with about 36 percent of the vote, according to the Ohio Secretary of State's website. In Athens County, however, Trump received more support than Kasich, winning about 42 percent of the vote to Kasich's 40 percent.
Aric Kaskey, vice president of the OU College Republicans, said though the group doesn’t endorse candidates in the primary, he personally favored Kasich.
“I believe he's the best option we have," Kaskey said. "I think he makes the best candidate and makes the most sense to win in November."
During a speech in Florida, Trump hardly acknowledged his loss in Ohio, focusing more on his overall success in the race.
"We’re going to have a lot of trips over the next month and I think we’re going to have a lot of victory," Trump said.
Because Ohio is a winner-take-all state, all its delegates are awarded to the winner of the Republican primary. Those who oppose Trump as the party’s nominee were pulling for a Kasich win in order to slowTrump’s momentum. Trump has won 19 primaries and caucuses, the most of any Republican candidate, and currently holds the most Republican delegates at 621.
Last week, Florida Sen. and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio even said Republicans in Ohio should vote for Kasich if they want to stop Trump.
“God help us if we’re rooting for John Kasich. He’s not been a friend to working Ohioans and people that are struggling in Ohio,” John Haseley, the chair of the Athens County Democratic Party, said. “It’s an ironic thing that a lot of people in Ohio who have been hurt by Kasich are kind of rooting for him right now.”
Kasich’s win in Ohio makes abrokered convention more likely, which would occur if a candidate cannot keep enough momentum to reach the 1,237 required delegates to win the GOP nomination. Kasich had 63 before Tuesday's primary. Ohio is the first state Kasich has won.
Contested conventions occur when none of the candidates have accumulated the majority of the delegates.
“We put one foot in front of the other, and I want to remind you again tonight that I will not take the low road to the highest office in the land," Kasich said to his supporters Tuesday night.
Trump, touts himself as the “outsider candidate," criticizing Kasich and others for being part of the ‘Republican establishment’.
However, Pete Couladis, chair of the Athens County Republican Party, said Kasich’s experience as a representative and as governor makes him more qualified for the office.
“That’s the Tea Party mentality that says anybody who’s in office is evil, and Donald Trump is the savior,” Couladis said.
Trump is known for his fiery rhetoric and disavowal of political correctness.
“These fear appeals and anger appeals traditionally will not have much longevity,” Jerry Miller, a political communication expert at Ohio University andassociate director of undergraduate studies in the School of Communication Studies, said.
Because many primaries and caucuses have been held over the past few weeks, the next few months will be less busy and will allow for more evaluation, said Kyle Kondik, a political analyst at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics and an OU and Post alumnus.
“I think it’ll give us some time to look at the delegate count and figure out whether Trump still has a path to winning the majority of the delegates or if we should start getting ready for a contested convention,” Kondik said.
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