The “First Draft” blog on The New York Times website reported on March 28 that Donald J. Trump, “girding for a long battle over presidential delegates and a potential floor fight at the Cleveland convention, has enlisted the veteran Republican strategist Paul J. Manafort to lead his delegate-corralling efforts.”
Mr. Manafort, 66, “is among the few political hands in either party with direct experience managing nomination fights,” The Times reported. The blog noted that he helped manage the 1976 convention floor for Gerald Ford and cited his similar role for Mr. Reagan in 1980, as well as his leading roles at the 1988 and 1996 conventions for George Bush and Bob Dole.
The political blog also reported that Mr. Manafort “has drawn attention in recent years chiefly for his work as an international political consultant, most notably as a senior adviser to former President Viktor F. Yanukovych of Ukraine, who was driven from power in 2014.”