Carl Weiser

The Cincinnati Enquirer

Some Republicans are trying to rebrand a 'contested' convention as an 'open' convention.

When Ohio Gov. John Kasich talks about what might happen in Cleveland at the Republican National Convention this summer, he often refers to an "open convention." ("Everybody's gotta face the fact that we're going to an open, multi-ballot convention," he told CNN.)

Mathematically unable to get the minimum 1,237 delegates to win on a first ballot, Kasich is pinning his hopes on a multi-ballot convention fight.

"We just have to keep going. And we're going to have an open convention," Kasich told host George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week Sunday. "And George, you're the guy that gets open conventions. It's going to be so much fun. Kids will spend less time focusing on Bieber and Kardashian, and more time focusing on how we elect presidents. It will be so cool."

On the same show, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus repeatedly used the same phrase, saying: "There will be no mystery over who has the majority, or if someone doesn't whether it's going to be an open convention. If it's an open convention, then we're going to have to be clear, open and transparent on what the rules say and how they're administered." Priebus used the "open convention" when he appeared on Face the Nation and Fox News Sunday as well.

A LexisNexis search shows the use of "open convention" shot up in March as the prospect became more likely — from just eight mentions in January to 241 in March.

The phrase "contested convention" is still used far more in the media: 1,466 times in March, up from 49 in January. The terms — along with "brokered" — mean the same thing: a convention in which no one wins on a first ballot. That would then lead to multiple ballots until a Republican nominee can win 1,237 delegates (a majority.)

Of course, an "open" convention sounds far more democratic and transparent than a "contested" convention (nasty and divisive) or a "brokered" convention (party elites making back-room deals).

Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee, also used "open convention" when he pushed for Republican voters to block front-runner Donald Trump: "The only path that remains to nominate a Republican rather than Mr. Trump is to have an open convention. At this stage, the only way we can reach an open convention is for Senator Cruz to be successful in as many of the remaining nominating elections as possible.

The smoked-filled room: A brief history of contested conventions