Despite reluctance among some of the state’s Republican leaders, Donald Trump has captured the Oregon GOP presidential primary.
The New York real-estate tycoon easily won Oregon’s primary, leading with 67 percent of the vote according to initial returns. Oregon awards 28 delegates, and Trump should collect the majority of them.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both of whom have suspended their campaigns and stopped campaigning in Oregon several weeks ago, trailed with 17 percent and 16 precent of the vote, respectively.
For a few weeks this spring, it looked as the Oregon GOP primary might make a difference. John Kasich ran TV ads in Oregon and campaigned in Portland and Medford. Oregon’s Republican establishment was slow to embrace Trump.
But as the Republican race turned, party leaders slowly came to the same conclusion as Oregon Republican voters: the two primary GOP candidates for governor, Allen Alley and Bud Pierce, both agreed to back him.
LIVE RESULTS: Oregon 2016 Primary
Oregon’s only Republican member of Congress, Rep. Greg Walden, endorsed Trump late last week. Though he opened campaign offices in Tigard and Eugene, Trump campaigned in Oregon just once.
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