California could end up deciding whether Donald Trump wins the Republican presidential nomination before the party's convention in Cleveland in July, as its 172 delegates could give the front-runner the necessary 1,237 he needs to avoid a messy floor battle.
The Golden State is among five holding primaries on June 7, the last day of the nominating season, The Washington Post reports. California has 53 congressional districts — and the primary's winner takes all the delegates.
Other states voting on that final day are New Jersey, with 51 delegates; South Dakota, 29; Montana, 27; and New Mexico, 24.
They are winner-take-all states.
In order the cinch the nomination, Trump would have to win "a whopping 74 percent of the available delegates prior to that date," the Post reports. "That includes the 652 delegates at stake in contests held between now and June 7, as well as the 104 delegates that haven't yet been awarded from states that have already voted.
"Trump would need to win 559 of those 756 delegates."
As for rival Ted Cruz, the Texas senator "wouldn’t even win the Republican nomination before June 7 if he won all 756 of those delegates," according to the report.
However, while some of the states holding primaries in the Northeast — others will be held in the Midwest, where rival John Kasich gained credence by winning Ohio on Tuesday, and some of the Western contests so far have proven successful for Cruz.
"Trump’s wins in Michigan and Illinois portend good things for such states as Pennsylvania, Indiana and Wisconsin, which have yet to vote," the Post reports.
So far, Trump's victories have shown that the developer has a vote ceiling, but that could change now that Marco Rubio has quit the race, according to the report.