Comments on: Live Blogging the True Grit Faceoff

By: Matthew Dickinson

Matthew Dickinson — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 03:35:55 +0000

Danny – Great question. The short answer is yes. Keep in mind that most of the caucus states haven’t formally allocated delegates as yet. For the other delegates chosen through primaries, in many states they are supposed to be pledged to their candidate only for the first round of voting at the convention, at which point they are essentially free agents. If no candidate gets a majority of delegates before the convention, then no one will win the nomination on the first ballot. So, yes, in effect they are free agents.

By: Danny

Danny — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 03:25:42 +0000

If Gingrich or Santorum or Paul drops out of the race, what happens to the delegates they’ve accumulated? Can they “donate” them to another candidate?

By: Matthew Dickinson

Matthew Dickinson — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 02:24:02 +0000

Michael – Great question! It will be interesting what impact the media explosion that will come if Rick takes Mississippi will have in Illinois. In terms of media spin, this is the worst possible outcome for Mitt. Doesn’t change the delegate math – Mitt’s still in front, but it is a reminder just how weak he is.

By: Matthew Dickinson

Matthew Dickinson — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 02:20:30 +0000

If Mitt doesn’t clinch this before the convention, then Florida and Arizona Winner-take-all decisions will almost certainly be contested by Rick and Newt. Hard to tell how that fight would play out in the RNC rules committee, since presumably Mitt would still have the numbers to block a change. But it’s hard to tell this far out. Keep in mind that the same holds for the caucus delegates…. most of those states haven’t finished their delegate selection process.

By: Michael Polebaum

Michael Polebaum — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 02:18:52 +0000

At what point does the media narrative turn into reality? If Fox, CNN, and MSNBC keep saying the same thing over and over again about how big these two wins could be for Santorum, when (if at all) does it become ingrained in the voters minds that Mitt can’t win and that Santorum is a very close second?