Sunday, March 6, 2016

Cruz delivered two definitive upset victories in Kansas and Maine and held Donald trump to narrow wins in Louisiana and Kentucky – shrinking the delegate gap between them and leaving his lower-polling rivals in the dust



On Saturday, Cruz took 48.2 percent of the vote in Kansas, putting Trump in second with 23.3 percent and Rubio in third at 16.7 percent.
And in Maine, Cruz won with 45.9 percent of the vote, beating Trump's 32.6 percent. John Kasich was third at 12 percent and Rubio was locked out of any delegates by falling below 10 percent.

Trump closed the night with small wins in Louisiana and Kentucky, gaining delegates but also watching many go into Cruz’s column.

Of the seven states that have held GOP caucuses so far, Cruz has now won four, and has notched six primary victories overall. It’s a record that pales compared to Trump’s long string of wins, but the only state Rubio has won outright is Minnesota, and Kasich has yet to win a state.

On Tuesday, Cruz scored his home state of Texas, as well as Alaska and Oklahoma, and in February won the Iowa caucuses. It’s a geographically diverse list of successes that Cruz supporters will take as more reason for the senator to remain in the race for the long haul, seeing that record as evidence he can compete across the map.

“We saw on Tuesday, the Super Tuesday results that were extraordinary. And today on Super Saturday, we seem to be seeing a continuation of that very same pattern,” Cruz told supporters gathered in Idaho, which will vote March 8, and where Cruz and other candidates are already campaigning.

“What we’re seeing is conservatives coming together," he said.