Texas Sen. Ted Cruz will deliver the keynote address a day before state party activists will elect 25 delegates to the national convention on Sunday. | AP Photo Cruz to one-up Trump with in-person pitch for North Dakota delegates The party will pick 25 delegates this weekend, and their votes will be up for grabs when the GOP picks a presidential nominee in July.

Ted Cruz is slated to personally attend North Dakota’s state GOP convention this weekend, lobbying state party insiders to send Cruz-friendly delegates to the Republican National Convention.

Cruz, according to North Dakota GOP officials, will deliver the keynote address Saturday, a day before state party activists elect 25 delegates to the national convention.


Unlike in most other states, North Dakota’s delegates won’t be beholden to any single candidate when they get there, making the delegate selection process the most significant political event in North Dakota this year. If Cruz and Donald Trump are locked in a tight race, North Dakota’s delegates could become part of a decisive bloc of “unbound” attendees, free to vote for whomever they choose.

Aware of their importance, Trump’s campaign is sending Ben Carson, one of its top surrogates, to lobby potential convention delegates. Ohio Gov. John Kasich will have his own emissaries there as well, led by former New Hampshire Sen. Gordon Humphrey.

Cruz's campaign has eyed North Dakota as a potential off-the-radar source of support. An internal campaign memo circulated earlier this month suggested the campaign’s advanced ground organization would help win over North Dakota’s unbound delegates, ensuring its supporters were among the 25 elected to the convention.

Cruz’s father, Rafael, was scheduled to be in North Dakota on Tuesday to stump for the Texas senator as well, according to the Grand Forks Herald.

Cruz’s speech, so far unannounced by his campaign, comes days before a fight among all three candidates in Wisconsin, which holds a primary next week.

The foray into North Dakota — one of only three states that holds no presidential nominating contest — underscores the increasing significance of the battle for convention delegates. Trump, Cruz and Kasich have all ramped up efforts to win the under-the-radar delegate fights that have begun playing out all over the country. So far, Cruz has demonstrated superior organization and connection with the GOP activists who tend to dominate the delegate contests. That could be a threat to Trump if he’s unable to clinch the nomination on a first ballot.