Huckabee: Indiana ‘make-or-break’ for Cruz

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-Ark.) on Monday said that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) desperately needs a win in Indiana’s GOP presidential primary.

“Tomorrow, Indiana Republicans vote in a primary that’s make-or-break for Ted Cruz,” the former presidential hopeful wrote on his website.

{mosads}“He’s already been mathematically eliminated (there aren’t enough delegates left for him to reach 1,237, even if he won them all). But winning Indiana’s winner-take-all race could slow [Donald] Trump’s momentum and keep him from reaching the magic number, too.”

Huckabee, himself a former Republican presidential candidate in 2008 and 2016, said that Gov. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) overshadowed his own endorsement of Cruz by complimenting Trump last Friday.

“Cruz picked up a valuable endorsement from Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, but its impact was blunted when Pence spent much of his time praising Donald Trump before endorsing Cruz,” said Huckabee, who suspended his own GOP presidential campaign in February.

“And if endorsements still influence voters (a questionable premise), Trump may have the high card with his endorsement from former Indiana Hoosiers coach Bobby Knight,” he continued.

“As a former governor myself, I have to admit that if any candidate in Arkansas had a choice between my endorsement or a nod from the coach of the [University of Arkansas] Razorbacks, they’d be crazy to pick me.”

Cruz on Sunday denied that a loss in Indiana’s GOP presidential primary would torpedo his chances to reach the White House.

Trump leads Cruz by almost 8 points the day before the Hoosier State’s primary, according to the latest RealClearPolitics average of polls.

Nationwide, however, Trump has a 14-percent edge over the Texas lawmaker.

Trump additionally leads Cruz in delegates, with 996 to the senator’s 565 in The Associated Press’s delegate tracker. At least 1,237 delegates are needed to secure the GOP presidential nomination and avoid a contested Republican National Convention in July.