Republican convention ‘like being at a sporting event’
A Donald Trump delegate expects boisterous scenes as the tycoon’s presidential nomination is confirmed.
James Castro-Blanco is the son of a Colombian immigrant, and a lawyer. In about seven weeks, he will attend the Republican National Convention, or RNC, as a Trump delegate for the state of New York. He talked to me this week about the delegate system, what happens at the RNC, and his hopes for the party as he looks forward to this year’s convention.
The RNC is where 2472 representatives from the various states gather. They vote on their party’s presidential and vicepresidential nominees. They approve policy platforms for the upcoming election.
This year the convention will be held on July 18-21 in a football stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. Yes, a football stadium – because in addition to the delegates, there will be thousands of party officials, volunteers, media, and observers. Although plenty of backroom dealing occurs out of sight of the cameras, some of the RNC is televised.
According to Castro-Blanco, ‘‘it’s like being at a sporting event, or a concert, especially the prime-time aspects like the speeches and the vote on the party platforms’’. He related his experience as a 2008 delegate. ‘‘When John McCain accepted the Republican nomination for president and implored the party to ‘fight with me’, the room was electric.’’
A delegate is a party loyalist, often someone who has served in a leadership position or has dedicated considerable time or energy to the party’s cause. This year, 95 delegates will come from New York. In basic terms, the state’s Republican leadership selects 14 delegates, and the remaining 81 are apportioned across the state in the New York primary election; three delegates for each of the 27 congressional districts.
Because Donald Trump won Trump’s people will be running the show. Castro-Blanco’s 16th Congressional District, he and two others will attend the RNC representing the 16th as Trump delegates. They are required to vote for Trump on the first ballot.
When the field was more crowded and it looked like the convention might be contested, Castro-Blanco and the rest of the New York delegation could have cast their votes in subsequent ballots for another candidate (he said he was a ‘‘Rubio guy’’). On Thursday, news came that Trump had locked up the nomination.
So how will 2016 be different to 2008, or 2012, I asked. ‘‘Louder, glitzier, because Trump’s people will be running the show,’’ CastroBlanco said.
And outside the convention? ‘‘I expect to see a concerted effort by protesters to disrupt the RNC. Trump’s a polarising figure, like Hillary Clinton on the other side.’’
Will the RNC be a fight for the heart and soul of the Republican Party? Castro-Blanco said he was hoping for party unity, and thought there were bigger problems looming for the Democrats, because of the infighting between Clinton and Bernie Sanders.
He said Trump was ‘‘a shake-itup candidate’’ who was responding to ‘‘palpable anger’’ among Republican voters.
‘‘He’s not my first or even second choice, but ultimately this is a binary choice.’’
As for Trump versus Clinton, ‘‘it’s clear as day’’.
Expatriate Kiwi Danielle McLaughlin, a Manhattan lawyer and American TV political commentator, is the Sunday Star-Times’ correspondent in the United States.