States that jump to the front of the line in the 2016 GOP race
for president will be subject to even harsher penalties, according to
changes adopted Friday by the rules committee of the Republican National
Convention.
Secretary of State Brian Kemp, a member of that body, just called from Tampa with news.
We all know that Florida agreed to sacrifice half of its 99 delegates
this year in order to hold its presidential primary in the calendar
space reserved for Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada.
If it tries the same thing next time, Florida – and any other state –
will lose all but 12 of its delegates. Nine at-large delegates, plus
three members of the Republican National Committee.
Call it the atom-bomb rule. “If you only have 12 delegates to the
convention – it makes you wonder if candidates would go to Florida and
spend five to ten million dollars to try to win that state for 12
delegates. I think it’s going to make people think long and hard about
breaking the rules,” Kemp said.
Republican delegates must approve the rule change during their convention.
Another change to the 2016 calendar: This year, states that held
their primaries between March 1 and April 1 were required to award their
delegates proportionally – based on a candidate’s performance in the
contest.
Georgia was one of them.
Only states that had primaries after April 1 were allowed to hold
winner-take-all contests. The distinctions were intended to prevent an
early winner – allowing more states to weigh in on the nomination.
In 2016, states will be allowed to hold winner-take-all contests
after March 1. Kemp likes that idea. “It simplifies our process, plus it
can give us a lot of early influence. We’re a big state,” he said.
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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