A group of conservatives is eyeing an open convention this summer to rally support behind a candidate other than Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump.
The group, led by commentator Erick Erickson, on Thursday called for a unity ticket to bring together parts of the Republican Party but said a convention fight may be needed to topple the controversial businessman.
{mosads}”If that unity ticket is unable to get 1,237 delegates prior to the convention, we recognize that it took Abraham Lincoln three ballots at the Republican convention in 1860 to become the party’s nominee and if it is good enough for Lincoln, that process should be good enough for all the candidates without threats of riots,” Erickson said in a statement on behalf of the group after a gathering in Washington.
The group of conservative leaders and Republican operatives met for more than three hours on Thursday morning at the Army and Navy Club to discuss a way to thwart Trump’s candidacy, including looking at the feasibility of launching a third-party challenge, according to The Washington Post.
The meeting was hosted by conservative activists Bill Wichterman and Bob Fischer, the Post reported. Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), a backer of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and member of the House Freedom Caucus, briefly attended the meeting, according to multiple reports.
Erickson said his group is “committed to ensuring a real conservative candidate is elected.”
“We believe that neither Hillary Clinton nor Donald Trump, a Hillary Clinton donor, is that person,” he said.
Trump has for several weeks called on Republicans to unite behind his White House bid and has sought in recent days to persuade lawmakers that they should back him now in order to avoid a contested convention in July, arguing that a united Republican Party would be best positioned to defeat the Democratic nominee.
But deep reservations within the GOP remain, and former rivals such as Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Marco Rubio (Fla.) on Thursday signaled that they were warming to Cruz: Rubio called Cruz the “only conservative left in the race” and news emerged that Graham would raise funds for the Texas senator.
“We encourage all former Republican candidates not currently supporting Trump to unite against him and encourage all candidates to hold their delegates on the first ballot,” Erickson’s group said in its statement, adding that the conservatives will keep their “options open as to other avenues to oppose Donald Trump.”