Donald Trump dismisses Cruz-Kasich electoral pact as 'dead and desperate'

The agreement was announced ahead of five primary contests where Mr Trump is expected to further his lead

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reacts to an answer his wife Melania gives during an interview on NBC's "Today" show in New York

They have tried ignoring him, they have tried to rise above him, and they have even tried to prove they can fight in the gutter as dirtily as he can.

Now, Donald Trump’s rivals have come up with a new plan to stop him - the formation of an electoral pact.

Over the weekend, it emerged that Ted Cruz and John Kasich had reach a deal over three upcoming primary contests. According to statements released simultaneously by their campaigns, Mr Kasich, the Ohio Governor, will pull out of the race in Indiana in order to give Mr Cruz a clear path in the polls there on May 3.

Meanwhile, Mr Cruz, a Texas senator, has said he will reciprocate the favour and stand aside for Mr Kasich in Oregon, which votes on May 17, and New Mexico, which votes on June 7.

Mr Trump appeared unimpressed. Campaigning ahead of five primaries that are taking place on Tuesday and where Mr Trump hopes to further underscore his frontrunner status, the New York tycoon dismissed the attempt to stop him as “dead and totally desperate”.

“Lyin' Ted and Kasich are mathematically dead and totally desperate,” Mr Trump tweeted late on Sunday night after his rivals' surprise announcement. “Their donors & special interest groups are not happy with them. Sad!”

A statement from the Trump campaign later called the move “a horrible act of desperation from two campaigns who have horribly failed.”

The Republican National Committee's communications director, Sean Spicer, said on Monday on MSNBC that “every campaign has to run its own strategy,” and that it wasn’t the RNC’s job “to handicap it as much to ensure that we have a fair and transparent process.”

The Cruz and Kasich campaigns made their announcement immediately after each appeared at a “town hall” event in Philadelphia, during which each tried to make the case that Trump was incapable of beating Hillary Clinton for the White House, but that polls show that each of them could.

Time is running out for Mr Trump's opponents (AP)

“Having Donald Trump at the top of the ticket in November would be a sure disaster for Republicans,” said Mr Cruz's campaign manager, Jeff Roe.

“To ensure that we nominate a Republican who can unify the Republican Party and win in November, our campaign will focus its time and resources in Indiana and in turn clear the path for Gov Kasich to compete in Oregon and New Mexico, and we would hope that allies of both campaigns would follow our lead.”

The Associated Press said the arrangement marked a sharp reversal for Mr Cruz’s team, which had aggressively opposed the idea of a coordinated anti-Trump effort as recently as late last week. Yet it also underscored the reality for the billionaire's opponents that time is running out.

Mr Cruz and Mr Kasich are trying to stop Mr Trump securing the 1,237 delegates he needs to tie up the party’s nomination ahead of the convention in July. Many believe no candidate will do so, opening the way for a so-called contested convention in which Mr Trump’s opponents would seek to block him. Mr Trump currently has 845 delegates, ahead of Mr Cruz on 559 and Mr Kasich on 148.

Yet polls also show Mr Trump ahead of his rivals in the five states that vote on Tuesday - Maryland, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Delaware. They carry a total of 118 Republican delegates.

An average of polls collated by Real Clear Politics put the tycoon 25 clear in Rhode Island, 17 points clear in Maryland, 19 points clear in Pennsylvania, 26 points clear in Connecticut and as many as 37 points ahead in Delaware.

At a rally in Hagerstown, Maryland, Mr Trump stressed repeatedly that he expects to win the 1,237 delegates needed in the first round of voting to stave off a contested convention.

“I only care about the first. We're not going for the second and third and fourth and fifth,” he said.

The Kasich campaign confirmed that it had cancelled two Indiana campaign events scheduled for Tuesday. As recently as three days ago Mr Kasich’s campaign announced investments in Indiana, including the opening of two offices and the creation of a campaign leadership team.

Campaign manager John Weaver said in a statement that the Kasich team hoped to perform well in Oregon and New Mexico, which Mr Weaver said were “structurally similar” to north-eastern states where Kasich performed well earlier in the cycle.

“Our goal is to have an open convention in Cleveland,” he added, “where we are confident a candidate capable of uniting the party and winning in November will emerge as the nominee.”