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Fact check: Have the rules governing the 2016 Republican National Convention been established?

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Verbatim fact checks involving the 2016 Republican National Convention
See also: Can GOP convention rules be changed so that a candidate with only a plurality of delegates wins the nomination?
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A banner announcing the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York

April 19, 2016
By Humberto Sanchez

Ohio Governor John Kasich has shown no sign of relenting in his quest to be the 2016 Republican nominee for president even though he has collected the fewest delegates and, to date, has had a victory in only a single primary contest—that of his home state.[1]

His primary opponents Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz have both called for him to drop out due to the fact that he has no mathematical chance of winning the 1,237 delegates needed to be the presumptive nominee at the GOP’s nominating convention in Cleveland in July.[2][3][4]

But Kasich’s persistence can be explained by a path to the nomination that he sees for himself. Kasich believes that he will continue to incrementally pick up delegates and that ultimately neither Trump or Cruz will win the requisite delegates on the first ballot at the convention. That would allow Kasich, who has made a point of trying not to alienate the other candidates or their supporters, to make his case at the convention that he appeals to a larger segment of voters and, for that reason, is the best candidate to take on the Democratic nominee.[5]

Before that can happen, Kasich must ensure that the convention rules are beneficial to him. At the 2012 convention, a rule known as 40(b) was adopted, requiring a candidate to have won the support of a majority of delegates in at least eight states to be eligible to be the nominee. When asked about the 2016 convention rules during an April 3 appearance on ABC’s This Week, Kasich said, “There are no rules governing the next convention. The rules have not been set.”[6]

So is it true that there are no rules for the GOP's 2016 convention? Yes. Each convention has its own rules, which are only binding for that convention. The rules for the 2016 convention have not yet been approved, but there is a process in place governing how those rules are established and who will make those decisions.[7]

The Republican National Committee’s Standing Committee on Rules develops a working draft that is ratified by the full committee. Then the draft goes to a temporary panel, formally known as the Convention Committee on Rules and Order of Business, which is free to change the rules and develop a rules package that is ultimately taken to the floor for a vote by the delegates.

Background

Overseeing the convention is the job of the Republican National Committee (RNC), which is made up of 168 members—three representatives from each state, territory, and Washington, D.C.[8]

The rulemaking process starts with the RNC’s Standing Committee on Rules—a group of 56 RNC members, one from each state, territory, and Washington, D.C.—which meets between conventions to develop a working draft of rules for the next convention.[9] The committee met between January 13 and January 16, 2016, in Charleston, South Carolina, where it developed a rules draft that amounted to a set of recommendations.[10][11] The RNC will hold its spring meeting in Hollywood, Florida, between April 20 and April 23, 2016, but it isn’t expected to make any rules changes. They may consider a proposal to switch convention floor procedure to Robert’s Rules of Order rather than House of Representatives rules. But that has been offered for previous conventions and has been rejected over concerns that it would make the process unmanageable.[9][12][13]

A week before the convention—traditionally the Wednesday before the convention begins—the full RNC ratifies the Standing Committee on Rules’ working draft. Then the temporary panel (formally called the Convention Committee on Rules and Order of Business, but also known as the convention rules committee) meets the Friday before the convention to begin its work.[14]

Convention Rules Committee

The convention rules committee is made up of 112 members—one male and one female from each state, territory, and Washington, D.C. The panel members are selected by each of the 56 delegations and together develop the package of rules that will govern the 2016 convention after the delegates approve the package on the convention floor.[14]

Each of the presidential candidates is seeking to influence the convention rules committee and have it write favorable rules by getting their supporters onto the panel. “Very important,” former RNC Lawyer Ben Ginsberg told NPR when asked about the matter. “Each of the campaigns are stressing this; to get their supporters on the rules committee; very important in the process.”[14]

To that end, Trump has hired Paul Manafort, who has years of convention experience, to be his convention manager.[15] Kasich also has an experienced team for the convention, including Stu Spencer and Charlie Black, who both served Ronald Reagan.[16] Cruz has waged a year-long effort to pick up delegates wherever possible, including by mastering the intricacies of complex delegate selection systems in states like Colorado.[17] In Louisiana, for example, despite losing the primary, Cruz picked up 10 delegates more than Trump, in part by lining up support from a set of delegates who aren’t bound to vote for any nominee.[18]

Rule 40(b)

The convention rules committee has typically adopted the recommendations from the RNC standing committee without much fuss. But 2016 could be a departure from that, with a contested convention possibly in the offing. A contested convention occurs when none of the candidates have the required number of delegates—in this case, 1,237—to be nominated on the first ballot.[19]

One issue the convention rules committee is expected to address is whether the panel will carry over Rule 40(b) for 2016.[20][4]

Rule 40(b) says that to be eligible to be the Republican nominee for president at the convention, a candidate must “demonstrate the support of a majority of the delegates from each of eight (8) or more states.” It was established for the 2012 convention in an effort to keep Ron Paul from appearing on the nominating ballot and to project the image of a unified Republican Party heading into the 2012 general election.[21]

The rule would be detrimental to Kasich’s candidacy if carried over, since he would have trouble meeting the threshold. Cruz and Trump have both voiced support for carrying the rule over.[22]

“And we'll see what a rules committee decides to do. But I expect that we're going to be gaining momentum, picking up delegates and heading into the convention,” Kasich told ABC.[6]

If carried over from 2012, the rule would restrict the list of eligible candidates to just Trump and Cruz, preventing another candidate from swooping in and winning the nomination if neither Trump nor Cruz is able to win the number of delegates required.[9]

Bound delegates

The convention rules committee may also weigh in on the issue of whether delegates are bound to vote for the candidate that won their state’s primary or caucus.

Under state rules, most delegates are bound on the first ballot, but not on the second ballot.[23] “On the second ballot, about 43% of delegates become free agents and if no one gets to 1,237 votes by the third ballot, about eight in 10 of those people are free agents,” according to CNN.[19]

But Curly Haugland, a GOP national committeeman from North Dakota and a member of the temporary rules committee, has pushed for not binding delegates at all, even on the first ballot.[24] Haugland has made it clear that he hopes to convince the convention rules committee to make rules allowing delegates to vote for whichever candidate they choose. According to Politico, Haugland is one of a few delegates who wants to make such a change; Sandye Kading, a delegate and Rules Committee member from South Dakota, noted that Haugland's proposal was unlikely to get much support.[20]

Conclusion

During an April 3 appearance on ABC’s This Week, John Kasich said that his ability to win the Republican nomination was premised on convention rules that were not yet established. “There are no rules governing the next convention. The rules have not been set.”[6]

So is it true that there are no rules for the GOP's 2016 convention? Yes. Each convention has its own rules, which are only binding for that convention. The rules have not yet been approved, but there is a process in place for how those rules are established and who will make those decisions. The RNC’s Standing Committee on Rules develops a working draft that is ratified by the full RNC. Then it goes to the temporary Convention Committee on Rules and Order of Business, which has a free hand to change the rules and develop a proposal that the delegates will vote on.

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Sources and Notes

  1. ↑ The Washington Post, "Kasich wins Ohio with an eye toward a contested convention," March 15, 2016
  2. ↑ The Washington Post, "Trump calls on Kasich to drop out of GOP primary race, says he voiced displeasure to RNC chair," April 3, 2016
  3. ↑ The New York Times, "Ted Cruz Is Fuming Because John Kasich Won’t Bow Out," April 4, 2016
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 CNN, "Can Trump get to 1,237 delegates?" March 25, 2016
  5. ↑ Politico, "Insiders: Kasich could win a contested convention," March 18, 2016
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 ABC News, "'This Week' Transcript: Gov. John Kasich, Sen. Bernie Sanders, and Reince Priebus," April 3, 2016
  7. ↑ Politico, "GOP superlawyer on contested convention rule: 'In fact, that's not a rule'," March 9, 2016
  8. ↑ P2016 Race for the White House, "Political Parties: Republican National Committee 2015," accessed April 14, 2016
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 National Review, "Fact vs. Fiction: A Guide to This Week’s RNC Meeting and July’s Convention Rules," April 18, 2016
  10. ↑ Real Clear Politics, "Threat of Brokered Convention Fuels GOP Rules Panel," January 15, 2016
  11. ↑ Post and Courier, "GOP to hold winter meeting in Charleston same week city hosts Democratic debate," September 25, 2015
  12. ↑ Breitbart, "Exclusive: Reince Priebus to RNC: Leave Convention Rules Alone Next Week in Hollywood, Let Delegates Themselves Handle in Cleveland," April 16, 2016
  13. ↑ The Washington Times, "Reince Priebus blasted for ‘major breach of trust’ by top RNC officials," April 16, 2016
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 NPR Politics Podcast, "Can Candidates Pay Delegates? A Contested Convention FAQ," April 11, 2016
  15. ↑ The Times-Picayune, "Trump hires Republican convention manager, a sign he's willing to play by rules," March 29, 2016
  16. ↑ Politico, "Kasich camp names advisers with contested convention experience," March 15, 2016
  17. ↑ NBC News, "Cruz Sweeps Colorado as Trump Campaign Issues Error-Filled Ballots," April 10, 2016
  18. ↑ NPR, "Trump's Threat To Sue Over Louisiana Delegates Reveals Organizational Weakness," March 29, 2016
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 CNN, "Meet the Rules Committee: 112 people who may decide the Republican nominee," April 12, 2016
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Politico, "GOP panelists eager to scrap rule that helps Trump," March 30, 2016
  21. ↑ RedState, "Rules at the 2016 Republican National Convention," March 8, 2016
  22. ↑ The Washington Post, "Cruz talks up an RNC rule that would keep Kasich out of the convention," March 31, 2016
  23. ↑ Convention Facts, "How It Works," accessed April 12, 2016
  24. ↑ The Daily Caller, "RNC Rules Comm. Member: Every Delegate At GOP Convention Not Bound On First Ballot," March 13, 2016

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