Carson threatens to leave Republican Party amid talk of brokered convention

David Jackson | USA TODAY

Ben Carson, citing reports that Republican Party leaders are discussing the prospects of a brokered convention, threatened Friday to leave the party if there are signs that the nomination process is being manipulated.

"If this was the beginning of a plan to subvert the will of the voters and replace it with the will of the political elite, I assure you Donald Trump will not be the only one leaving the party," Carson said in a statement.

Carson responded to a Washington Post report that Republican leaders met this week to discuss what to do if no candidate wins a majority of delegates heading into the party convention next July. GOP leaders also reportedly discussed how to cope with Trump's rise to the top of most GOP polls.

Said Carson:

"I pray that the report in the Post this morning was incorrect. If it is correct, every voter who is standing for change must know they are being betrayed. I won't stand for it."

When asked by ABC News about the potential for a third-party run, Carson said, “I have no intentions of running as an independent. But I certainly don’t want to be a part of corruption.”

Ben Carson tells @KFaulders he won't run as an independent if he leaves GOP after reports of a brokered convention. https://t.co/koyLO7FOIy — ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) December 11, 2015

Carson reiterated his pledge not to run against the Republican nominee during an appearance on Fox News’ Your World with Neil Cavuto later Friday, saying “I would never do that.”

“Regardless of what they do, it would be better than having Hillary,” Carson said of the Democratic front-runner, Hillary Clinton.

Once near the top of Republican polls, a potential challenger to Trump, Carson has seen his standing fall in recent weeks amid questions about his experience and foreign policy acumen.

From the Associated Press: