Republican insiders have a message for Donald Trump in the wake of the GOP front-runner’s complaints that the party’s presidential nominating system is “rigged” against his candidacy: Stop whining about the rules.

That’s according to The POLITICO Caucus – a panel of operatives, strategists and activists in 10 key general-election battleground states. Ninety-two percent of Republican insiders said the system is fair and dismissed Trump’s claims, which came after a delegate shutout in Colorado’s district and state conventions last week.


“Mr. Trump apparently has zero understanding of how our caucus system works in Colorado, and he got exactly what he deserved — zero delegates for zero amount of time spent here,” said a Colorado Republican — who, like all respondents, completed the survey anonymously.

Ted Cruz, with whom all the Colorado delegates selected are aligned, “had people on the ground for 8 months,” added another GOP insider there. “Trump hired his first ground operative here last Wednesday. He was out-worked.”

Republican members of The POLITICO Caucus haven't been fans of Trump throughout the election, and a number of insiders used this question to tee off on the real-estate magnate. Multiple insiders mentioned Trump’s past use of bankruptcy laws to stabilize his businesses and his support for the use of eminent domain to seize private property for public uses.

“It should come as no surprise that someone with four bankruptcies to his name didn't have a contingency plan if he starting losing,” said an Iowa Republican. “I've never been a part of a campaign where delegate acquisition is the last thing you think of because it is always, always the first.”

And some insiders suggested the Trump campaign’s struggles in amassing delegates was a sign the candidate was ill-prepared to be president.

“For all of Trump's business success, is it believable that he and his team don't understand and grasp the nominating process and rules?” asked a Wisconsin Republican. “If not, how is he going to understand the complexities of trade deals, tax reform, budgets, construction of a wall and more should he end up in the Oval Office?"

“This guy can't figure out publicly known delegate rules,” added a New Hampshire Republican, “but thinks he can go toe to toe with China or Russia?”

Only 8 percent of GOP insiders disagreed, and said they agreed with the following statement: “Trump’s claims that the GOP nominating system is unfair and undemocratic are well-founded.”

Some of those who said Trump was whining also had some sympathy for his plight.

“The rules are the rules,” said an Iowa Republican. “All that said, some of the contests like Colorado are a complete farce. If I lived in Colorado, I would be upset I don't have an opportunity to participate in a statewide contest.”

“The system may not be fair,” added a Virginia Republican, “but everyone knew the rules going in.”

Democrats: Sanders won’t reset the race with a win in New York.

Even if Bernie Sanders comes from behind to defeat Hillary Clinton in New York’s Democratic presidential primary next week, it won’t reset the race for the nomination, a majority of Democratic insiders say.

Six-in-ten Democrats said a Sanders victory would not materially change the dynamic of the race, while 40 percent said it would. A number of insiders pointed to the reality of the delegate math: A narrow Sanders victory in New York would do little to help the Vermont senator erase his deficit among pledged delegates.

“The Clinton-Sanders fight has become a farce,” said a New Hampshire Democrat. “Everyone knows Hillary will be the nominee, and it is time for Bernie to declare victory and go home. We have an election to win.”

“First of all, Sanders is not going to win New York, but for the sake of argument, let’s say he does,” added an Ohio Democrat. “It would be by the slimmest of margins, which means that Hillary would likely still be awarded more delegates because of proportional allocation and her cracker-jack delegate team’s understanding of the rules. Secondly, if Hillary wins only 50 percent of the delegates through April 26, then Sanders has to win over 90 percent of the remaining delegates. The math is not on his side. I'm so confident, I've already begun shopping for my ball gown for President Clinton's inauguration.”

The survey was conducted prior to Thursday night’s televised debate in Brooklyn.

One Florida Democrat compared the Sanders camp’s insistence that the Vermont senator’s recent winning streak had altered the course of the race to Trump's claims: “Call me when he has a meaningful path. Like Trump, he knew the rules.”

But a number of Democrats said if Sanders prevailed in Clinton’s home state — it would be his ninth victory in the last 10 contests — it would spell trouble for Clinton.

“Even if Bernie wins by a smallish margin, he still doesn't really have a path to victory. But the narrative would be really toxic for Hillary if she doesn't win,” said another Florida Democrat. “The media would not be kind to her. And the Democratic Party would be in crisis.”

And some Democrats said a Sanders victory would change the race — but it’s unlikely he’ll prevail next Tuesday.

“Yes, but it won't happen,” said a Nevada Democrat. “For Hillary to lose her home state would be a kick in the teeth and would generate actual momentum for Sanders as opposed to the imaginary kind he has been claiming with his small state wins. If she loses the Empire State, Hillarybots should go into panic mode.”

Other Democrats worried that a disappointing performance in New York would increase the chances Clinton would need a significant number of superdelegates to pull her across the finish line at the national convention in Philadelphia — leading Sanders and his supporters to cry foul.

“Hillary needs a strong win in New York so that there won't be a lot of whining about super delegates,” said a North Carolina Democrat.

These are the members of The POLITICO Caucus, not all of whom participated in this survey:

Colorado: Adam Eichberg, Alan Salazar, Andrew Freedman, B.J. Nikkel, Craig Hughes, Cole Finegan, Frank McNulty, Janice Sinden, Karen Middleton, Laura Carno, Matt Chandler, Mark Ferrandino, Michael Fortney, Owen Loftus, Pat Steadman, Pat Waak, Pete Maysmith, Rick Ridder, Rob Witwer, Roxane White, Ryan Call, Steve Welchert, Taylor West, Ted Harvey, Will Coyne

Florida: Alia Faraj-Johnson, Andrea Reilly, Andrew Weinstein, Andrew Wiggins, April Schiff, Ashley Walker, Ben Pollara, Beth Matuga, Brian E. Crowley, Chris Korge, Christian Ulvert, Damien Filer, David Beattie, David Johnson, Dennis Baxley, Elizabeth Cuevas-Nuender, Eric Johnson, Eric Jotkoff, Fernand R. Amandi, Fred Menachem, Gus Corbella, Jacki Lee, Jessica D. Ehrlich, Joe Mobley, John Dowless, Jon Mills, Joseph Falk, Judith Diaz, Justin Day, Kelly Cohen, Kevin Cate, Kevin Sweeny, Marian Johnson, Mark Ferrulo, Marty Fiorentino, Max Steele, Nelson Diaz, Nick Iarossi, Pamela Burch Fort, Rich Heffley, Richard R. Swann, Rick Wilson, Roger Stone, Ronald L. Book, Ryan Duffy, Ryan Wiggins, Scott Arceneaux, Slater Bayliss, Steve Schale, Steven Vancore, Susan A. MacManus, Tim Baker, Wayne Bertsch

Iowa: Tim Albrecht, Brad Anderson, Rob Barron, Jeff Boeyink, Bonnie Campbell, Dave Caris, Sam Clovis, Sara Craig, Jerry Crawford, John Davis, Steve Deace, John Deeth, Derek Eadon, Ed Failor Jr., Karen Fesler, David Fischer, Doug Gross, Steve Grubbs, Tim Hagle, Bob Haus, Joe Henry, Drew Ivers, Jill June, Lori Jungling, Jeff Kaufmann, Brian Kennedy, Jake Ketzner, David Kochel, Chris Larimer, Chuck Larson, Jill Latham, Jeff Link, Dave Loebsack, Mark Lucas, Liz Mathis, Jan Michelson, Chad Olsen, David Oman, Matt Paul, Marlys Popma, Troy Price, Christopher Rants, Kim Reem, Craig Robinson, Sam Roecker, David Roederer, Nick Ryan, Tamara Scott, Joni Scotter, Karen Slifka, John Smith, AJ Spiker, Norm Sterzenbach, John Stineman, Matt Strawn, Phil Valenziano, Jessica Vanden Berg, Nate Willems, Eric Woolson, Grant Young

Nevada: Adam Khan, Andres Ramirez, Andrew Diss, Barbara Buckley, Bob Cavazos, Brendan Summers, Chip Evans, Chuck Muth, Dan Hart, Daniel Stewart, Ed Williams, Emmy Ruiz, Erven T. Nelson, Greg Bailor, Heidi Wixom, Jack St. Martin, James Smack, Jay Gertsema, Jeremy Hughes, Jim DeGraffenreid, Jon Ralston, Kristen Orthman, Laura Martin, Linda Cavazos, Lindsey Jydstrup, Mac Abrams, Mari St. Martin, Marla Turner, Megan Jones, Michael McDonald, Michelle White, Mike Slanker, Neal Patel, Nick Phillips, Oscar Goodman, Pat Hickey, Paul Smith, Pete Ernaut, Peter Koltak, Riley Sutton, Robert Uithoven, Roberta Lange, Ryan Erwin, Ryan Hamilton, Sam Lieberman, Scott Scheid, Yvanna Cancela, Zach Hudson

New Hampshire: Charlie Arlinghaus, Arnie Arnesen, Patrick Arnold, Rich Ashooh, Dean Barker, Juliana Bergeron, D.J. Bettencourt, Michael Biundo, Ray Buckley, Peter Burling, Jamie Burnett, Debby Butler, Dave Carney, Jackie Cilley, Catherine Corkery, Garth Corriveau, Fergus Cullen, Lou D’Allesandro, James Demers, Mike Dennehy, Sean Downey, Steve Duprey, JoAnn Fenton, Jennifer Frizzell, Martha Fuller Clark, Amanda Grady Sexton, Jack Heath, Gary Hirshberg, Jennifer Horn, Peter Kavanaugh, Joe Keefe, Rich Killion, Harrell Kirstein, Sylvia Larsen, Joel Maiola, Kate Malloy Corriveau, Maureen Manning, Steve Marchand, Tory Mazzola, Jim Merrill, Jayne Millerick, Claira Monier, Greg Moore, Matt Mowers, Terie Norelli, Chris Pappas, Liz Purdy, Tom Rath, Colin Reed, Jim Rubens, Andy Sanborn, Dante Scala, William Shaheen, Stefany Shaheen, Carol Shea-Porter, Terry Shumaker, Andy Smith, Craig Stevens, Kathy Sullivan, Chris Sununu, James Sununu, Jay Surdukowski, Donna Sytek, Kari Thurman, Colin Van Ostern, Deb Vanderbeek, Mike Vlacich, Ryan Williams

North Carolina: Anita S. Earls, Brad Thompson, Bruce Thompson, Charles Wallin, Christopher Sgro, Dee Stewart, Douglas Wilson, Dylan Frick, Francis X. De Luca, Jonathan Felts, Melissa Reed, Michael Luethy, Morgan Jackson, Paul Shumaker, Patsy Keever, Ray Martin, Robin Hayes, Tami Fitzgerald, Taylor Griffin, Theresa Kostrzewa, Thomas Mills

Ohio: Bill DeMora, Bob Clegg, Cindy Demse, Damareo Cooper, David Leland, David Pepper, Erica Bruton, Greg Beswick, Ian James, Jai Chabria, Janet Carson, Jo Ann Davidson, Joe Hallett, Kathy DiCristofaro, Katie Eagan, Mark R. Weaver, Martha Clark, Matt Borges, Melissa Klide Hedden, Michael Gonidakis, Mike Dawson, Molly Shack, Nick Martin, Rhine McLin, Tim Burke, Wes Goodman

Pennsylvania: Charlie Gerow, Christopher Nicholas, Christopher P. Borick, Daniel F. Fee, David P. Sosar, David Thornburgh, Doc Sweitzer, Jaosn Ercole, Larry Ceisler, Marcel Groen, Mark Harris, Nachama Soloveichik, Ray Zaborney, Todd Stephens, Valentino DiGiorgio

Virginia: Abbi Easter, Bob Marshall, Brian Coy, Carolyn Fiddler, Chris LaCivita, Doris Crouse-Mays, Ed Matricardi, Frank Leone, Gaylene Kanoyton, Janet Carver, Jeannemarie Devoltes Davis, Jo Thoburn, Joe Fitzgerald, John Crosgrove, John Findlay, Marc Broklawski, Margo Horner, Michael Farris, Patsy Brown, Pete Snyder, Ray Allen, Sandra Brandt, Steve Stombres, Sue Langley, Susan J. Rowland, Susan Swecker, Tom Davis, Tucker Martin

Wisconsin: Barry Burden, Brandon Scholz, Emily Nehring, Gary B. Hawley, Jason Rae, Jim Camery, John T. Zaphfel, Kevin Barthel, Meg Andrietsch, Marian Krumberger, Mary Arnold, Michael Basford, Patrick Guarasci, Rebecca Bonesteel, Robert Hansen, Terri Burl

Kristen Hayford contributed to this report.