On Wednesday, Ted Cruz announced he was planning a “major announcement”—potentially unveiling his vice-presidential pick—in a last-ditch effort to halt Donald Trump’s march to the nomination. WMUR and National Review’s Tim Alberta report that Cruz will name Carly Fiorina to his ticket, apparently hoping that she can expand his appeal among voters he’s struggled to reach, ahead of fiercely contested primaries in Indiana and her home state of California.
There’s some irony in Cruz’s struggle to hold on for long enough to force a contested convention. In early spring, he alleged it would lead to voters’ “revolt” if the evil Washington establishment colluded to elect its favored candidate. All the talk was just D.C. types in a “fevered frenzy,” he said, upset because “their golden children” have been rejected by voters.
Fast-forward a couple months, and Cruz is now banking on a contested convention as his only avenue to win the nomination.
But while Cruz’s calculus has changed in recent weeks, the obstacles in his path haven’t: He still needs to halt Trump’s gains, particularly after Trump’s string of wins in the Northeast, and Cruz still must contend with delegate math that’s not currently working in his favor. Cruz and his supporters are now looking to Indiana to bolster his delegate count, and to justify his candidacy. Trump, meanwhile, is now calling himself the presumptive nominee. “Tonight, this campaign moves back to favorable terrain,” Cruz said Tuesday, soon adding: “The question is, Can the state of Indiana stop the media’s chosen Republican candidate?”