Four States’ Republican Parties Will Cancel 2020 Primaries As Trump Faces Challengers

Republican parties in four states will cancel 2020 primaries and caucuses just as President Donald Trump is facing challenges for the GOP nomination. The decision has been criticized by Trump’s opponents who see it as more evidence that the party is now fully under his control.

South Carolina, Nevada, Arizona and Kansas will move to scrap their primaries in what many will see as a bid to stymie Trump’s Republican challengers. Former Congressman Joe Walsh and former Libertarian vice presidential candidate Bill Weld are both trying to challenge the President.

“Trump and his allies and the Republican National Committee are doing whatever they can do to eliminate primaries in certain states and make it very difficult for primary challengers to get on the ballot in a number of states,” Walsh told Politico.

“It’s wrong, the RNC should be ashamed of itself, and I think it does show that Trump is afraid of a serious primary challenge because he knows his support is very soft.”

Republican presidents have faced primary challenges before, most recently in 1992 when Pat Buchanan challenged George HW Bush. Though Bush won, many observers believe the primary challenge damaged him significantly. He did not win in November.

Trump and his Republican allies are moving to cut off any potential primary challenge. The President is already facing a tough re-election bid as his unpopularity remains at record levels.