Popular vote doesn’t count in US: GOP official

A member of the US Republican National Committee has admitted that the GOP candidate in the 2016 presidential election will be chosen by the party establishment and voters have no say in the matter.

"The media has created the perception that the voters will decide the nomination," Curly Haugland, one of the party's few unbound delegates that can decide who they want to vote for, told CNBC on Wednesday.

"The political parties choose their nominees, not the general public, contrary to popular belief," Haugland noted.

When asked what is the point of holding primaries if the party can disregard popular vote, Haugland refused to offer any explanation.

"That's a very good question," he said.

Some Republican officials have proposed the idea of contested convention in order to prevent leading presidential contender Donald Trump from securing the party's nomination.

However, the New York businessman is on track to score the nomination by winning 661 delegates of the 1,237 needed for nomination. This is while 1,079 more delegates are still up for grabs in other states.

Haugland, said that the party can block Trump even if he wins all necessary delegates through the primaries.

"The primary votes are not considered [at the convention], it's the delegates' votes," he said.

Trump scored major victories on the third Super Tuesday, winning the key states of Florida, Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina.

In his victory speech, Trump once again warned of public unrest if the GOP elite block him at the convention.

He has also repeatedly raised the possibility of running as an independent candidate if party officials treat him “unfairly.”

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