Colorado Republicans – 9KUSA Steve Staeger Hits National News

Donald Trump has been using the Colorado Republican delegate results, a near sweep by Ted Cruz, to reinforce his outsider anti-establishment position. It may help him in New York. As his home state and not Cruz-friendly territory, he should win it big (53% in latest polls).

But there is a substantial backlash from knowledgeable individuals arguing that the Colorado system, while unique and hardly easy to navigate, is well-known by Republican political activists. Most of the failure to grab at least a few delegates is a reflection of Trump ignoring the process until it was too late.

However, many Colorado Republicans, including numerous leaders, thought dropping the preference poll at caucus was a mistake (see blog Feb. 29 here).

Channel 9’s Steve Staeger covered the latest controversy:

9NEWS political expert Floyd Ciruli blamed the results on both the party and Trump himself. Ciruli said the state party made a major mistake last summer when they decided to cancel the statewide presidential preference poll slated for March.

“By not having a preference poll, they disenfranchised thousands and thousands and those people today, they are angry. Are they going to vote for the eventual nominee if it’s not Donald Trump, who knows," he said.

Ciruli also said Trump didn’t put much effort in Colorado, while Cruz established a strong ground game here.

“Donald Trump clearly had no ground game. He didn’t understand the rules," Ciruli said.
Trump plans to contest the results.

Also see:
Conservative View: Yes Donald, Colorado did vote…on March 1st 
The Federalist: Colorado proves Donald Trump can’t handle the rigors of a campaign
Politico: Cory Gardner defends Colorado from Trump
Ari Armstrong: Setting the record straight about Colorado’s Republican caucus
Denver Post: Donald Trump’s whining about Colorado delegates misses the point
The Buzz: Republicans Not Happy