Trump forces protest NH GOP delegate selection gambit

Printed from: https://newbostonpost.com/2016/05/02/trump-forces-protest-nh-gop-delegate-selection-gambit/

MANCHESTER, N.H. – A spat is brewing between Donald Trump supporters and Republican party officials in New Hampshire over which delegates should hold posts on the powerful GOP national convention committees.

Trump won 11 of the state’s 23 delegates. New Hampshire rules allow campaigns to hand-select their delegates, in effect ensuring greater loyalty should the nominating process go beyond the first ballot.

But in a perceived move to deny Trump power, the state party is proposing a committee slate that doesn’t include any Trump supporters. Each state gets to place two delegates on committees, including the rules committee, which will set the guidelines for selecting a nominee during the national conclave in Cleveland.

Trump’s campaign, in response, is launching an effort to control all eight committee seats.

Delegates were originally asked to vote by email on the party’s proposed slate. But in the face of backlash — including from non-Trump supporters who see the kerfuffle as an unnecessary headache — the delegates will now vote in person at a Friday meeting.

“In the interest of party unity, I am willing to reschedule the vote at an in person meeting,” state party Chairwoman Jennifer Horn wrote in the email. She hasn’t responded to multiple requests for comment.