Former President Donald Trump has several advantages in the 2024 election — a large donor base, enthusiastic supporters, and a past presidency under his belt.
In several states, the former president will also benefit from rule changes about how delegates are allocated to secure the necessary vote to win the GOP nomination.
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California recently joined several state Republican parties that are modifying their rules that determine how delegates are selected for primary candidates. It's a move that has been pushed by the Trump campaign since the 2020 election to give the former president an edge over his opponents, particularly in large states where campaigning can be costly and ineffective when up against the front-runner.
Trump is currently polling at 53.9%, according to Real Clear Politics. He holds a significant lead, almost 50%, ahead of several candidates. The closest candidate to Trump is Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), who has the most to lose from the delegate changes.
Here are the states that have changed their delegate rules in recent years, and how it can impact the GOP nomination outcome.
California
The California GOP altered the way that delegates are allocated last week. If a Republican candidate wins over 50% of the primary vote, they will receive all of the delegates from the state. If no one reaches 50%, delegates will be split among the candidates proportionally.
Under the original rule, three delegates were allocated for each congressional district won. That way, a candidate could strategically campaign in certain districts without wasting resources on the entire state.
California has the most delegates of any state, so this will give the winner a significant boost in the national primary results. Several state polls show Trump leading DeSantis in the primary by as much as 30%.
Republicans against the rule change say that the new system will prevent GOP primary competition. With Trump far enough ahead in the polls, other candidates will be less incentivized to campaign in the Golden State.
Michigan
Michigan Republicans made a change to the state's delegate rule in June. Now, delegates will be split and allocated at different times.
Originally, all presidential delegates were allocated based on an open primary election. Now, 16 of the state's 55 delegates will be awarded based on the primary held on Feb. 27.
The remaining 39 delegates will be distributed four days later in closed-door caucus meetings of party activists. Due to the state party's current makeup, this would likely give Trump an edge over the other candidates.
Michigan Democrats moved the primary to the February date, which Republicans argued would have whittled the number of delegates that Michigan receives from 55 down to 12, due to Republican National Committee criteria, and marginalized millions of voters had they not changed the allocation rule.
Nevada
Nevada will hold presidential primaries for the first time in over four decades on Feb. 6, 2024. However, the Republican GOP plans to hold a traditional caucus to allocate the state's presidential delegates.
At the Republican National Convention, Nevada will have 26 delegates. Per RNC rules, states holding primaries before March 15 must be allocated proportionally to votes.
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Colorado and Louisiana
Both states are proposing changes to the law this year that would prevent any last-minute wavering.
Under the new changes, delegates would be bound to their assigned candidate during a second round of voting in the national convention in the event that no candidate receives a majority on the first ballot, according to the Associated Press.