On Tuesday March 15th, five states will hold primaries: Florida, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio. The day is especially important because it includes some winner-take-all states (Florida, Missouri and Ohio), which means that a winning candidate can take all of the state’s delegates.
Here’s a quick update on some of the current delegates awarded and possible pathways to the nomination for both Democratic and Republican candidates.
Republican Candidates
Trump remains the GOP frontrunner after the March 8 primaries earlier this week, when he won big victories in Michigan, Mississippi, and Hawaii. Cruz won Idaho. Kasich placed third in Michigan and Rubio fourth.
The current delegate count among the Republican candidates is:
Trump – 462
Cruz – 358
Rubio – 154
Kasich – 54
A Republican candidate must win 1,237 delegates to win the nomination.
Democratic Candidates
Among Democrats, front runner Clinton won Mississippi but Sanders had a surprising victory in Michigan by about 2 percentage points.
Current count:
Clinton – 768 or 1,220, including super delegates
Sanders – 553, or 574 including super delegates.
Democratic candidates need 2,382 delegates in order to win the nomination.
The possible scenarios on March 15th for Republican candidates’ wins and pathways to the nomination are as follows:
Scenario #1 – Rubio wins FL, Kasich wins OH, Cruz wins IL, Trump wins MO – Trump will need to win 76% of the remaining delegates to be nominated on the first ballot.
Scenario #2 – Trump wins FL & MO, Kasich wins OH, Cruz wins IL – Trump will need to win 65% of the remaining delegates to be nominated on the first ballot.
Scenario #3 – Trump wins FL, MO & IL, Kasich wins OH – Trump will need to win 58% of the remaining delegates to be nominated on the first ballot.
For Democrats:
Sanders would need to win landslides in order to become the Democratic Party’s nominee. About 33% of all the pledged delegates to the Democratic National Convention have been awarded, and Clinton has won those by roughly 60-40.
If your state primary is on Tuesday, remember to exercise your voice to be heard and vote!
