Report: Trump will get access to RNC voter file
Donald Trump's campaign has signed a deal that will allow it to access the Republican National Committee's (RNC) voter file on millions of Americans, according to a report by Politico.
The RNC had initially offered the voter file to Trump soon after he launched his presidential bid in June. While the reason for the delay is unclear, the GOP presidential frontrunner has occasionally been at odds with the party.
Many of the other presidential candidates signed similar agreements with the party earlier this year, which allows candidates to access the names, voting history of more than 200 million Americans.
The list-sharing agreement between Trump's campaign and the RNC is significant because the party requires that those who enter such deals promise to support the GOP presidential nominee. For a while, Trump had repeatedly threatened to launch a third-party bid if he found that Republican officials treated him unfairly. He put those threats to rest at the last debate earlier this month.
With access to the voter file, Trump could win over more supporters and solidify his base even more. For the RNC, the report noted that the party will be able to permanently keep any information on Trump supporters so it could be used in future election cycles.
Trump's campaign won't be required to pay to access the voter data, the report said, but his campaign might have spent some cash on a data operation.
Neither the RNC nor Trump's campaign confirmed the agreement to Politico, but a GOP aide told CBS News that all candidates have the opportunity to access the voter file.
The report comes as Trump says his campaign will start to spend a lot of money in the key early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire.
On Tuesday, he tweeted that his campaign is under budget and will spend "big" now.
My campaign for president is $35,000,000 under budget, I have spent very little (and am in 1st place).Now I will spend big in Iowa/N.H./S.C.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 29, 2015He also criticized GOP rival Jeb Bush for spending a lot during the cycle so far while not making gains in the polls.
So, I have spent almost nothing on my run for president and am in 1st place. Jeb Bush has spent $59 million & done. Run country my way!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 29, 2015