BILLINGS, Mont. --- Here's a key part of Donald Trump general-election strategy: He plans to focus on about 15 states, including some where Republican nominees don't often campaign.
"We have to win, and I want my energy to be put into the states where it could go either way," Trump said at a rally here on Thursday evening. "And we're going to play heavy, as an example, in California. Now no other Republican -- they wouldn't even go to dinner in California. They wouldn't do it."
But that means Trump won't be returning to Montana, which he described as "very much a Republican stronghold." Trump said that as he drove from the airport to the rally site, he passed a number of people who cheered him on. He took that as a signal that he has this state locked down and doesn't need to spend much more time here. The crowd seemed to take the news well and one man in the crowd shouted that he had Trump's back.
So which states will Trump target? California. Ohio, where he plans to spend a lot of money. Michigan. New York, his home state which was once represented by Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate. Florida, where he owns several golf resorts and a private club where he often lives. And Virginia, which is also home to a Trump golf course
The Associated Press, which tracks each candidate's delegate tallies and the commitment of delegates, announced Thursday that Trump had exceeded 1,237 -- the number needed to secure the Republican nominate. He is expected to be formally installed as the nominee at the party's convention in Cleveland in July.
Trump said that his strength as a candidate is sometimes misunderstood and that his vote percentages in many states would have been even higher if he didn't have so many Republican rivals.
"We don't get enough credit," Trump said at the rally. "I say 'we' because we're like a group. We won today. We won -- not me, we all won today."
Previously:
• 05/13/16: Trump-Ryan meeting attracts fake Trump, a bagpiper and a guy with a ram's horn
• 05/03/16: Trump says he has more foreign policy experience than 'virtually anybody'
• 04/07/16: With new hires, Trump's unconventional campaign about to become very
• 03/24/16: Nothing is off limits for Donald Trump, including spouses
• 03/02/16: Who supports Donald Trump --- and why: His coalition is broad and getting deeper
• 03/02/16: From here on, Donald Trump is doing this his way
• 02/22/16: 25 quotes capturing Trump's final pitch to South Carolina
• 02/18/16: 'Build that wall' has taken on a life of its own at Trump's rallies --- but he's still serious
• 02/16/16: Here are 76 of Donald Trump's many campaign promises
• 02/01/16: Is Donald Trump for real? We'll start getting an answer in Iowa
• 01/28/16: Fracas with Fox News shows Trump's need for control
• 01/19/16: Why so many evangelicals have faith in Donald Trump
• 01/14/16: In Pensacola, Trump said . . . What did he say? Can you hear him?
• 12/28/15:Trump fans can rally, but will they vote?
• 12/14/15: Trump really wants to win Iowa; here are 6 signs that he's worried
• 12/02/15: Trump takes gentler, more personable tone in New Hampshire
• 11/13/15: No more Mr. Nice Trump: The Donald lets loose in Iowa
• 10/28/15: Donald Trump to Iowa: 'What the [blazes] are you people doing to me?'