Republicans In 4 States May Scrap Primaries, Caucuses To Thwart Trump Challengers

Four states are preparing to cancel their 2020 Republican presidential primaries and caucuses to thwart the long-shot hopes of President Donald Trump’s GOP challengers.

Republican parties in South Carolina, Nevada, Arizona and Kansas are expected to finalize cancellations of primaries and caucuses at meetings in those states this weekend, Politico reported.

Canceling primaries would effectively rob a long-shot candidate of his or her chance to wrest the GOP nomination from Trump.

Former Massachusetts Gov. William F. Weld and California businessman Rocky De La Fuente have said they will challenge the incumbent president for the Republican nomination.

While the odds of either one of them winning the nomination are remote, they could harm Trump in the general election.

Presidents Gerald Ford in 1976, Jimmy Carter in 1980 and George H.W. Bush in 1992 all faced challengers within their own parties and went on to lose the general election.

New York magazine had first reported in January that GOP officials in South Carolina were weighing whether to cancel the primary there to bolster Trump’s support among Republicans.

South Carolina took the same step in 2004 on George W. Bush’s behalf.

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