This article contains the results of the 2016 Republican presidential primaries and caucuses, the processes by which the Republican Party selected delegates to attend the 2016 Republican National Convention from July 18–21. The series of

primaries Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the c ...

caucuses A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...

, and state conventions culminated in the national convention, where the delegates cast their votes to formally select a candidate. A simple majority (1,237) of the total delegate votes (2,472) was required to become the party's nominee and was achieved by the nominee, businessman

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

of New York. The process began on March 23, 2015, when Texas Senator

Ted Cruz Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...

became the first presidential candidate to announce his intentions to seek the office of

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

. That summer, 17 major candidates were recognized by national and state polls, making it the largest presidential candidate field for any single political party in American history. The large field made possible the fact that the 2016 primaries were the first since

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Janu ...

(and the first in which every state held a contest) in which more than three candidates won at least one state. When voting began in the 2016 Iowa caucuses, twelve major candidates were actively campaigning; these were (ordered by date of withdrawal from the race) former Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, former Senator

Rick Santorum Richard John Santorum ( ; born May 10, 1958) is an American politician, attorney, and political commentator. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007 and was the Senate's third ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, Senator Rand Paul of

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, Governor

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Christie, who was born in N ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, businesswoman and former Hewlett-Packard Chief Executive Officer

Carly Fiorina Cara Carleton "Carly" Fiorina (''née'' Sneed; born September 6, 1954) is an American businesswoman and politician, known primarily for her tenure as CEO of Hewlett-Packard (HP). As chief executive officer of HP from 1999 to 2005, Fiorina was ...

, former Governor Jim Gilmore of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, Governor

Jeb Bush John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. Bush, who grew up in Houston, was the second son of former President George H. W. Bush ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, former neurosurgeon and

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consi ...

Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery

Ben Carson Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgeon and politician who served as the 17th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2017 to 2021. A pioneer in the field of neurosurgery, he ...

, Senator Marco Rubio of

, Senator

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, Governor

John Kasich John Richard Kasich Jr. ( ; born May 13, 1952) is an American politician, author, and television news host who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001 and as the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, Kasic ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, and the eventual nominee, businessman and

Trump Organization Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. ...

CEO

. Following poor results from the first-in-the-nation caucus, Huckabee was the first candidate to drop out. Santorum also ended his campaign after a poor performance in Iowa. Paul withdrew from the race after placing fifth in Iowa, and subsequently polling poorly leading into the New Hampshire primary. Christie, who put nearly all of his campaign's resources into the critical state of New Hampshire, withdrew on February 10, 2016, after finishing sixth in the state. Following Christie's announcement, Fiorina suspended her campaign, which was unable to gain traction. Gilmore, who severely lacked funding, campaign infrastructure, and support, surprised many political pundits by staying in the race as far as he did; he dropped out shortly after the New Hampshire primary. Bush withdrew from actively campaigning after finishing fourth in the South Carolina primary. After

Super Tuesday Super Tuesday is the United States presidential primary election day in February or March when the greatest number of U.S. states hold primary elections and caucuses. Approximately one-third of all delegates to the presidential nominating co ...

, Carson announced that there would be "no path forward" for his bid for the Presidency, effectively suspending his campaign. On March 15, 2016, Rubio dropped out after losing his home state, leaving three active candidates (Cruz, Kasich, and Trump). Trump's resounding victory in the Indiana primary on May 3, 2016, prompted Cruz's exit from the race. The following day, Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee after Kasich dropped out. Trump was formally nominated by the delegates of the 2016 Republican National Convention on July 19, 2016, and proceeded to defeat Democratic

nominee A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs. * t ...

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

in the general election on November 8, 2016, to become the 45th

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Overview of results

Delegation Vote ,2016 (Republican Party)

2016 Republican Party presidential primaries popular vote

Major candidates

;Notes: :^a Vote totals may include votes for minor candidates, "uncommitted", "no preference", "write-ins" or other options. :^b In the Virgin Islands, 65% of the vote (1,063 votes) went to uncommitted delegates. :^c In Guam, 8 out of 9 delegates initially went uncommitted, and 1 unpledged delegate initially went to Cruz. After all candidates but Trump withdrew, Trump garnered the support of all 9. :^d In Wyoming, 5% of the vote went to uncommitted delegates. :^e In American Samoa, all 9 delegates initially went uncommitted. After all candidates but Trump withdrew, Trump garnered the support of all 9. :^f In North Dakota, some delegates have committed to Cruz or Trump, but these delegates are unpledged.

Other candidates

Prior to the Iowa caucuses, five major candidates, who had been invited to the debates, had withdrawn from the race after states began to certify candidates for ballot spots: Rick Perry, Scott Walker, Bobby Jindal, Lindsey Graham, and George Pataki. Other candidates, nearly 15 in New Hampshire alone, were able to make it on the ballot in individual states. Some votes for minor candidates are unavailable, because in many states (territories) they can be listed as Others or Write-ins. Since the beginning of the primary season, none of these other candidates have been awarded any delegates.

Results

Primary and caucuses can be binding or nonbinding in allocating delegates to the respective state delegations to the National convention. But the actual election of the delegates can be at a later date. Delegates are (1) elected at conventions, (2) from slates submitted by the candidates, (3) selected by the state chairman or (4) at committee meetings or (5) elected directly at the caucuses and primaries.
Until the delegates are actually elected the delegate numbers are by nature projections, but it is only in the nonbinding caucus states where they are not allocated at the primary or caucus date.

Early states

Iowa

Nonbinding caucus: February 1, 2016
State convention: June 2016
National delegates: 30

New Hampshire

Primary date: February 9, 2016
National delegates: 23

South Carolina

Primary date: February 20, 2016
District conventions: April 2016
State convention: May 7, 2016
National delegates: 50

Nevada

Primary date: February 23, 2016
County conventions: March 12 – April 2, 2016 (presumably)
State convention: May 7 – 8, 2016 (presumably)
National delegates: 30

Super Tuesday

Super Tuesday is the name for March 1, 2016, the day on which the largest simultaneous number of state presidential primary elections will be held in the United States. It will include Republican

in nine states and caucuses in two states, totaling 595 delegates (24.1% of the total). North Dakota holds the last caucus on Super Tuesday, but there is no presidential straw poll, and all the delegates elected later at its convention will be unbound. Colorado and Wyoming take a straw poll, but it is non-binding, and no delegates are allocated on Super Tuesday. The 2016 schedule has been dubbed the "SEC Primary", since many of the participating states are represented in the U.S. collegiate

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

. The participating states include

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

caucuses,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

caucuses, Oklahoma,

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, and

Super Tuesday 2016 (Republican Party, results)

Alabama

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 50

Alaska

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 28

Arkansas

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 40

Georgia

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 76

Massachusetts

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 42

Minnesota

Precinct Caucuses date: March 1, 2016
State Convention: May 20–21, 2016
National delegates: 38

Oklahoma

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 43

Tennessee

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 58

Texas

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 155

Vermont

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 16

Virginia

Primary date: March 1, 2016
National delegates: 49

Early-March states

On March 5, 2016, one state held a primary while three others held caucuses. Because of the relative timeframe between Super Tuesday and because more than 100 delegates were awarded to each state's respective winner, the media has dubbed this date as "Super-Saturday." The following day, Puerto Rico voted in their own primary and between March 8 and April 1, 17 more states have voted or will vote.

Maine

Primary date: March 5, 2016
National delegates: 23

Kansas

Primary date: March 5, 2016
National delegates: 40

Kentucky

Primary date: March 5, 2016
National delegates: 46

Louisiana

Primary date: March 5, 2016
National delegates: 46

Puerto Rico

Primary date: March 6, 2016
National delegates: 23

Hawaii

Caucus date: March 8, 2016
National delegates: 19

Idaho

Primary date: March 8, 2016
National delegates: 32

Michigan

Primary date: March 8, 2016
National delegates: 59

Mississippi

Primary date: March 8, 2016
National delegates: 40

US Virgin Islands

Caucus date: March 10, 2016
National delegates: 9

Mid-March states

District of Columbia

Convention date: March 12, 2016
National delegates: 19

Guam

Caucus date: March 12, 2016
National delegates: 9 Gov.

Eddie Calvo Edward Jerome Baza Calvo (born August 29, 1961) is an American (U.S. citizen) politician who served as the 8th Governor of Guam from January 3, 2011 to January 7, 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Calvo was a five-term Senator within the ...

, one of the delegates from Guam, had announced his support for Cruz prior to the March 12 Guam caucus. But, the slate of delegates all committed to Trump after both Cruz and Kasich dropped out.

Wyoming

County conventions date: March 12, 2016
National delegates: 12

Florida

Primary date: March 15, 2016
National delegates: 99

Illinois

Primary date: March 15, 2016
National delegates: 69

Missouri

Primary date: March 15, 2016
National delegates: 52

Northern Mariana Islands

Caucus date: March 15, 2016
National delegates: 9

North Carolina

Primary date: March 15, 2016
National delegates: 72

Ohio

Primary date: March 15, 2016
National delegates: 66

Late March states

Arizona

Primary date: March 22, 2016
National delegates: 58

Utah

Caucus date: March 22, 2016
National delegates: 40

American Samoa

Caucus date: March 22, 2016
National delegates: 9

April states

North Dakota

State Convention dates: April 1–3, 2016
National delegates: 28

Wisconsin

Primary date: April 5, 2016
National delegates: 42

Colorado

District Conventions dates: April 2, 2016 (districts 1, 6), April 7 (district 7), and April 8 (districts 2, 3, 4, 5)
State Convention date: April 9, 2016
National delegates: 37

Wyoming

State Convention date: April 14–16, 2016
National delegates: 17

New York

Primary date: April 19, 2016
National delegates: 95

Connecticut

Primary date: April 26, 2016
National delegates: 28

Delaware

Primary date: April 26, 2016
National delegates: 16

Maryland

Primary date: April 26, 2016
National delegates: 38

Pennsylvania

Primary date: April 26, 2016
National delegates: 71

Rhode Island

Primary date: April 26, 2016
National delegates: 19

May states

Indiana

Primary date: May 3, 2016
National delegates: 57

Nebraska

Primary date: May 10, 2016
National delegates: 36

West Virginia

Primary date: May 10, 2016
National delegates: 34

Oregon

Primary date: May 17, 2016
National delegates: 28

Washington

Primary date: May 24, 2016
National delegates: 44

June states

California

Primary date: June 7, 2016
National delegates: 172

Montana

Primary date: June 7, 2016
National delegates: 27

New Jersey

Primary date: June 7, 2016
National delegates: 51

New Mexico

Primary date: June 7, 2016
National delegates: 24

South Dakota

Primary date: June 7, 2016
National delegates: 29

References

;Notes ;Citations

External links

RNC 2016 Republican Nominating Process

Green papers for 2016 primaries, caucuses, and conventions
{{United States presidential election, 2016 *

Overview of results

Major candidates

Other candidates

Results

Early states

Iowa

New Hampshire

South Carolina

Nevada

Super Tuesday

Alabama

Alaska

Arkansas

Georgia

Massachusetts

Minnesota

Oklahoma

Tennessee

Texas

Vermont

Virginia

Early-March states

Maine

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Puerto Rico

Hawaii

Idaho

Michigan

Mississippi

US Virgin Islands

Mid-March states

District of Columbia

Guam

Wyoming

Florida

Illinois

Missouri

Northern Mariana Islands

North Carolina

Ohio

Late March states

Arizona

Utah

American Samoa

April states

North Dakota

Wisconsin

Colorado

Wyoming

New York

Connecticut

Delaware

Maryland

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

May states

Indiana

Nebraska

West Virginia

Oregon

Washington

June states

California

Montana

New Jersey

New Mexico

South Dakota

See also

References

External links