Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee, announced on Friday he would vote for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the upcoming Utah caucus and said he was "repulsed" by what Trump had brought into the presidential race.
Romney stopped short of endorsing Cruz, but said that voting for the Texas senator, who is second in the delegate count for the Republican nomination, was the best chance of blocking Trump from winning.
"The only path that remains to nominate a Republican rather than Mr. Trump is to have an open convention. At this stage, the only way we can reach an open convention is for Senator Cruz to be successful in as many of the remaining nominating elections as possible," Romney wrote on Facebook.
Romney, who blasted Trump in a speech earlier this month, further criticized the Republican frontrunner.
"Today, there is a contest between Trumpism and Republicanism. Through the calculated statements of its leader, Trumpism has become associated with racism, misogyny, bigotry, xenophobia, vulgarity and, most recently, threats and violence," he wrote. "I am repulsed by each and every one of these."
Trump immediately responded to Romney's announcement on Twitter, saying it actually helped Trump.
Even though Romney campaigned with Ohio Gov. John Kasich earlier this week, he said that voting for the Ohio governor would allow Trump to win the nomination.
"I like Governor John Kasich. I have campaigned with him. He has a solid record as governor," he wrote. "I would have voted for him in Ohio. But a vote for Governor Kasich in future contests makes it extremely likely that Trumpism would prevail."
Utah's GOP caucuses will be held on March 22.
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