CHICAGO – Wednesday morning, Ohio Governor John Kasich was met by hundreds at DuPage County's Navistar Atrium in Lisle. He'll move to the Palatine Park District Community Center Gymnasium in Palatine at 1:30 PM today, and will appear on Fox News' "On the Record" in a townhall held in downtown Chicago Wednesday evening.
While many have been calling for Kasich to step out of the GOP presidential race, his campaign made it clear Tuesday night that he's not going anywhere – especially before next Tuesday's primaries in Illinois and his home state of Ohio:
Less than two weeks ago, Governor Kasich was dead last in Michigan polling, with support in the single digits and at half the level of Senators Cruz and Rubio. Tonight, Governor Kasich surged to an unexpectedly strong finish.
Our campaign has always said that as the race goes deeper into the calendar and the field narrows, Governor Kasich’s positive message and proven record will begin to break through. The outcome in Michigan tonight means our campaign is ahead of schedule. Governor Kasich won late deciders in Michigan with 35 percent.
In fact, a new WSJ/NBC national poll shows Governor Kasich rocketing to third place nationally, ahead of Marco Rubio, and tied with Donald Trump and Ted Cruz in the states that are yet to vote.
Voters want a leader who doesn’t just talk about shaking up the political system, but has actually done it. No one else in the race can match Governor Kasich’s record of results – balancing the federal budget, helping create more than 400,000 jobs in Ohio, turning an $8 billion deficit into a $2 billion surplus and enacting the largest state tax cut in the country. Governor Kasich hasn’t just talked the talk, he’s walked the walk.
The results in Michigan today – on top of previous second place finishes in Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire – provide more proof that support for Governor Kasich will only grow stronger in the days and weeks ahead.
Governor Kasich’s performance in Michigan provides a springboard into the races on March 15, the day the race will officially reset. Governor Kasich will win Ohio, picking up all of its 66 delegates. His performance in Ohio and other March 15 states will also show that he is the strongest candidate left as the race moves north and west.
After March 15, more than 1,000 delegates will still be available, and the electoral map shifts significantly in our favor, with the delegate-rich states fitting Governor Kasich’s profile.
States that will still have contests after March 15 include: Arizona (58 delegates), Utah (40 delegates), North Dakota (28 delegates) Wisconsin (42 delegates), New York (95 delegates), Colorado (37 delegates), Connecticut (28 delegates), Delaware (16 delegates), Maryland (38 delegates), Pennsylvania (71 delegates), Rhode Island (19 delegates), Indiana (57 delegates), West Virginia (34 delegates), Oregon (28 delegates), Washington (44 delegates), California (172 delegates), Nebraska (36 delegates), Montana (27 delegates) New Jersey (51 delegates), New Mexico (24 delegates) and South Dakota (29 delegates).
Who is running on the March 15th Illinois GOP primary as Kasich delegates? Check out the listing HERE.
