The question boils down to this: Did the RNC properly allow the Republican Party of Florida to decree its primary a winner-take-all contest for Florida delegates? Or should Florida's 50 delegates in fact be divvied up proportionally by each candidate's share of the primary vote?
“The rule is absolutely clear — it should be proportional,’’ said former RNC Chairman Michael Steele, who led the national party when the rules were drawn up.
Yes, it sounds like an arcane debate about the minutiae of party rules. But if you're the candidate who spends millions of dollars and finishes a close second in Florida, it matters a lot whether the winner leaves Florida with 50 more delegates than you or five. -—
Brian Hughes, spokesman for the Florida GOP, said it's a nonissue, that the RNC’s legal office has already signed off on Florida's winner-take-all primary plan.
“Michael Steele can say all he wants, but he's not the chairman anymore,” Hughes said. “The RNC accepted our rule and that's it. We are winner-take-all.”
That's not guaranteed, however. All it takes is a registered Florida Republican to file a protest with the RNC, and the party's contest committee would have to consider the issue when it meets in August just before the convention.
I think the underlying issue in Florida was that Florida already lost half of its votes because they moved the primary up.
What the Florida GOP should have done is change to a WTA at the same time they moved it up, but they didn’t do it. Hindsight is 20/20