Donald Trump will gather enough delegates soon to become the Republican candidate for president. That, barring something fantastic, will happen in the next few weeks.
If you're not a Trump supporter, you may be hoping for the fantastic. If you are a "#Never-Trump" proponent, you may be planning the fantastic.
A story in Mother Jones suggests that members of the "establishment" wing of the Republican party, having failed to stop Trump in his quest to win the GOP nomination by winning delegates, has a "plan C" that just may keep Trump, and likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, out of the White House.
What’s Plan C?
According to the story, Republican strategist Liz Mair told Mother Jones that there is an option being discussed that would see popular third-party candidates running in individual states in order to win that state’s electoral votes. For instance, Mitt Romney may run in Utah, or Sen. Ben Sasse in Nebraska.
Should the individual candidates win enough states, and they would only need a few, they could block both Trump and Clinton from getting enough electoral votes – 270 – to win the election. Should that happen, the president would be chosen by the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives.
Hello President Romney.
Can they do that?
Yes. The 12th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution allows for the process. Basically, if no candidate gets the required 270 electoral votes to be elected president, the decision on who the next president is goes to the House of Representatives. There, each state gets one vote.
Here is what it says:
The person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one vote; ...
Who would be the likely candidate(s)?
The name you hear most when either option is discussed is Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), Mitt Romney, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and even billionaire Mark Cuban.
Is there another plan?
The single third party candidate option is also being floated. Erick Erickson, of the conservative website The Resurgent, talked about a third party candidate as a possible option in an interview on National Public Radio this week. Bill Kristol, editor of The Weekly Standard, told The Washington Post that "Our research and groundwork show an independent bid is doable. I think someone credible will seize the moment within the next couple of weeks."
Can they win?
Third party candidates are nothing new, but if one became president, that would be historic. In the 38 presidential elections since 1856, no third-party or independent candidate has been elected president.
However, what they can do is pull needed votes from one candidate or the other.
Can they get on the ballot now?
A third-party candidate can still get on the ballot in some states, but it's not easy. Colorado, New Hampshire and Ohio – with 18 electoral votes – are attractive options because the rules in those states make it easier for a third party candidate to get on the ballot. You have to gather signatures to petition to be on the general election ballot.
Has it happened before?
Yep. Though this is a long-shot plan, it's not impossible. In 1824, John Quincy Adams was elected president despite winning neither the popular vote nor the electoral vote. Andrew Jackson won the popular vote and had more electoral votes than Adams. Jackson, however, did not reach the 131 majority needed for a win in the Electoral College. The decision went to the House of Representatives, and Adams was the next president.
What does the RNC say about it?
Reince Priebus, the chair of the Republican National Committee, says he is no fan of a third party candidate or candidates.
"They can try to hijack another party and get on the ballot, but look, it's a suicide mission for our country," Priebus said on Fox News Sunday, "because what it means is that you're throwing down not just eight years of the White House but potentially 100 years on the Supreme Court and wrecking this country for many generations."
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