GOP caucus backs Donald Trump

Republicans attending the Harrison County Caucus Saturday morning at the courthouse elected delegates who will back Donald Trump at the 6th Congressional District Caucus on April 30 in Chillicothe.

The county caucus approved a motion by Casey Guernsey to bind the six-member county delegation to Trump when they attend the Chillicothe caucus. Guernsey pointed out that Harrison County voters favored Trump over Ted Cruz in the Presidential Preference Primary election in March.

“We have a responsibility to represent the county” at the congressional caucus, Guernsey said.

But Morris Weyers, who backs Cruz, said he does not believe that the delegation should be committed to Trump. He said Trump did not receive a “distinct majority in the county or the state” in the primary. Trump defeated Cruz by 755 votes to 591 in Harrison County and won by an even smaller margin in Missouri.

Weyers described Cruz as “a solid Christian all his life, not just lately.”

“Personally I would not buy a used car from Donald Trump,” Wyers said.

Bill Thomas of Ridgeway said Trump “wasn’t my first choice,” but he feels that the delegation should reflect the wishes of the majority of the county voters.

He agreed with former County Clerk Barbara Gates, a longtime GOP leader, who told the caucus, “I think we should back the the majority of the county.”

County caucuses, which are the first step in the process of nominating presidential candidates, were held across the state on Saturday. The congressional caucus will be followed by the state convention on May 20 in Branson.

Based upon the results of the presidential preference primary, delegates to the national convention in Cleveland are expected to give 37 votes to Trump and 15 to Cruz in the first round. After that, delegates are free to vote how they want.

The Harrison County caucus elected Guernsey, Mike and Laura Klindt, Jim Holcomb, Rick Smith and Rand Slama to the congressional convention. The alternates are Cathy Smith, Barbara Gates, Jackie Deskins, John Fordyce and Jeanne Hamilton.

Delegates to the state convention are Mike and Laura Klindt and Stephanie and John Fordyce. The alternates are Gary and Suzanne Hatten.