US Election: Cruz & Kasich join forces to battle Trump

In the US Presidential race, Republican rivals Ted Cruz and John
Kasich have formed an alliance to stop Donald Trump from winning the
party's nomination.

They hope their coordinated strategy will allow them to jointly battle
the New York businessman.

The news came a day before five more states held their Primary votes.

Nick Harper reports from New York.

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TAKE VO
In this bitter and bruising race for the White House, teamwork is not
exactly expected.
But in an unusual show of solidarity Ted Cruz and John Kasich would
rather band together than see Trump triumph.

SOT - Ted Cruz, Republican US Presidential candidate
"After discussions with the Kasich campaign, we made a decision about
allocating resources. We decided to allocate our time and energy and
resources on the state of Indiana. Governor Kasich decided to allocate
his resources elsewhere. I think that made sense from both campaigns."

TAKE VO
That means carving up the map, allowing Cruz to campaign unchallenged
by Kasich in Indiana.
And in return giving Kasich a free run at New Mexico and Oregon.
The Ohio governor similarly echoed that need to focus "resources".

SOT - John Kasich, Republican US Presidential candidate
"This is a matter of resources. And you know, we are running a
national campaign and we want to apply our resources where we think
they can be used most effectively."

TAKE VO
But this is more about maths than resources.
Trump needs the magic number of 1237 - the number of delegates he
needs, across all the US states, to win the Republican nomination
outright.
Failing to get there forces a contested convention - where delegates
could pick any of the candidates - a scenario Cruz and Kasich are
hoping for as it could be their only ticket to the White House.

TAKE VO
Trump, never known for keeping quiet, accused his competitors of
collusion and desperation.

SOT - Donald Trump, Republican US Presidential candidate

TAKE VO
Trump is on track for another big delegate haul in Tuesday's northeast
primaries when Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Rhode
Island go to the polls.
This Cruz-Kasich joint-strategy could slow him down. But it also seems
to be a acknowledgement that alone neither of them can beat Trump.
Yet even with this new pact, it may still be too little too late.
Tuesday's results are likely to push Trump a step closer to leading
the Republicans in November's general election.
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