Our View: Kasich’s win, Trump’s loss
March 15, 2016
Gov. John Kasich won the Ohio primary Republican vote Tuesday night, earning the 66 delegates his home state. Kasich’s win helped his own presidential campaign, but the significance behind his victory is really a valiant, last-ditch effort to eliminate GOP frontrunner Donald Trump’s candidacy.
Some political pundits believe Ohio voters rallied around Kasich to block Trump, a brash, outspoken candidate who, despite little true qualifications, threatens to become the next president of the United States.
Even then-candidate Marco Rubio urged Ohioans to vote for Kasich in yesterday’s primary. Trump’s already tallied 568 delegates of the 1,237 required to earn the Republican nomination, and Kasich’s tally now stands at a disheartening 129. Ohio was the first state Kasich has won, but it’s also a winner-take-all state, meaning no other candidate will get a fraction of the available delegates.
This remains significant because if Trump doesn’t reach the required amount of delegates by the time the preliminary voting ends, the GOP would run a contested convention. In that case, the GOP Convention in July would become much more significant, in that top party officials would need to select a nominee.
But Ohio wasn’t the only state to vote on Monday, and for those with a disdain for Trump, not all came out to be good news. While Trump picked up a win in Florida, Rubio subsequently suspended his campaign. Kasich might not be too far off from dropping out either, as he’s earned the least amount of delegates to date.
Even still, Kasich’s win is a blow to Trump’s chances at reaching the White House. Among other criticisms, we believe Trump’s derogatory speech and unsubstantial policies are enough to discount him as a legitimate candidate. His campaign is fueled by anger and he brings out the wrong ideals in the American public.
Kasich’s victory in Ohio on Tuesday isn’t going to be the dagger to the heart of Trump’s candidacy, but for Democrats — and most moderate Republicans alike — Kasich’s win proved to be a good sign. As an editorial board, we also agree: Anything to end Trump’s campaign is a step in the right direction.