Do You Really Think Super-Delegates Will Vote for Obama?
It was my hope that the lessons learned during the Gore/Bush “hanging chad” election would never be repeated and that our President would be elected the way our forefathers intended … based on POPULAR VOTE.
Unfortunately the upcoming election may once again be taken out of our hands … the hands of the majority … and this time decided by those little known entities — the so-called “Super-Delegates”.
Who are these Super-Delegates?
Super-delegates (approximately 850 in 2008) include the following:
Elected members of the Democratic National Committee (~450)
Democratic Governors Democratic US Senators and US Representatives (including non-voting delegates) Distinguished party leaders (current and former Presidents and Vice Presidents; former Democratic leaders of the Senate and House; former DNC chairmen)
Unpledged “add-on’s” chosen by the DNC
What Is The Rationale For Super-Delegates?
The Democratic Party established this system in part in response to the nomination of George McGovern in 1972. McGovern took only one state and had only 37.5 percent of the popular vote. Then in 1976, Jimmy Carter was a dark-horse candidate with little national experience. Super-delegates were implemented in 1984.
Super-delegates are designed to act as a check on ideologically extreme or inexperienced candidates. It also gives power to people who have a vested interested in party policies: elected leaders. Because the primary and caucus voters do not have to be active members of the party (in New Hampshire they can sign up and sign out going-and-coming at the polls), the super-delegate system has been called a safety-valve.
What Is The Importance of Super-Delegates?
The Democratic Party allocates delegates based on a state’s Presidential vote in the prior three elections and the number of electors. In addition, states that hold their primaries or caucuses later in the cycle receive bonus delegates. It has been 30 years since the Democratic Party had a cliffhanger going into the Convention. If there is no clear winner after state primaries and caucuses, then the super-delegates — who are bound only by their consciences — will decide the nominee. Therefore it is more important than ever to make your voices heard…loud enough to influence these Super-Delegates who may still be undecided.
And with that said … without endorsing either party or a specific candidate … here’s your Election Food For Thought.
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