Thursday, August 23, 2007

Michigan and Florida are breaking DNC Rules; disrespect minorities in doing so

As a South Carolina Democrat, I've watched closely the process that has played out over the past six years or so that the Democratic National Committee has undergone to expand the early Primary/Caucus field to include more minorities. It was a very long process and meticulously handled by the Rules and By-laws Committee of the DNC. Many hearings and meetings were held to get input from countless numbers of people.

In the end, Nevada was chosen for an early Caucus and South Carolina was chosen for an early primary. The "window" was set to "open" a matter of days after the SC Primary, giving all other States the opportunity to jockey, as has been the tradition in the past, for position after a date certain.

Unfortunately, after not being chosen for the early Primary period, Democratic Leaders in Michigan and Florida are ignoring the rules that were passed by the Rules and By-Laws Committee and full DNC by an overwhelming margin. In doing so, they're denying minorities a much-sought after voice in the early nominating process.

Nevada was chosen as an early Caucus State because of its' growing labor population, it's Native American population, and its Hispanic/Latino population. South Carolina was chosen because African Americans are expected to represent at least 40% of Democratic Primary voters. These ethnic minorities have NO SIGNIFICANT representation in the other early States.

The Primary and Caucus calendar is a delicate thing. We've all seen the magic of Iowa and New Hampshire and the power they have in dictating the direction of the nomination. Understandably, we are all envious of that magic and would love to have a piece of it.

There was a vigorous competition to win the two coveted spots that the DNC opened to the pre-window period. In the end, Nevada and South Carolina were chosen.

Accordingly, we now have the most diverse early nominating process we have ever had. We, as Democrats should be incredibly proud of that. By having these contests in four 'small' states, it also allows more candidates the ability to compete, giving a wider array of options to Primary voters.

Michigan and Florida have broken the rules and should be penalized for it. They are rogue State Parties that have chosen to ignore the rules and the spirit in which those rules came to exist. It's offensive to those who worked so have to increase diversity in the process.

The Democratic National Committee should realize that they are on the verge of becoming irrelevant. If their Party Rules can be ignored without significant penalty, then their existence may be pointless. The most coveted thing the party controls in our nominating process is the calendar. The DNC MUST stand up and make it clear that any State Party that violates the pre-window period will be severely punished.

21 comments:

Nirmal said...

A few things:

- Michigan is a diverse state.

- The Michigan Democratic Party is opposed to the way the Michigan Senate passed the primary bill:

"It's unfortunate that the Senate Republicans passed this presidential primary bill today. The Michigan Democratic Party continues to oppose this bill and we applaud all the Democrats in the State Senate for unanimously voting against it. We look forward to having our caucus plan approved at the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting this Saturday in Washington , DC."
- Most of the Michigan Democrats in the state legislature are opposing the primary date change.

So, your criticism that the MDP is a "rogue State Party" or that "Democratic Leaders in Michigan and Florida are ignoring the rules" isn't entirely accurate.

Unknown said...

A quick Google search brings up the following ethnic breakdown of Michigan:

http://www.apiavote.org/worddocs/State%20Profiles/MICHIGAN.pdf

According to this source, Michigan is about 78% white, 14% black, 3.2% hispanic, 2.2% Asian-Pacific and 0.5% Native American.

Plus, as Nirmal noted, this was brought on by the Republican-held Senate and state GOP, *not* by the state Democratic party.

Lane Hudson said...

A few comments in response to Nirmal and bluedjinn:

Michigan lacks the prevalence of African American and Hispanic/Latino Population that SC and Nevada have.

It should also be noted that, although the MDP issued a statement opposing the bill passed by the State Senate, every Democrat in the Senate voted to move the date from FEb 5 to Jan 15, which is the primary issue in this discussion.

Anonymous said...

I'm a south carolinian born and raised and I think this is total bullshit. If this shit happened in florida or california it would have already been worked out. It all comes down to the number of electoral votes, doesn't it.

Anonymous said...

Mr Hudson:
I am trying hard to understand exactly what is going on with the Michigan democratic primary, and your blog helped very much to clarify the stance of the DNC.

However it still seems to me that to make the votes for a democratic candidate irrelevent in Michigan and Florida is a huge gamble. If I were an undecided voter living in one of these states, I would be angry that the DNC didn't care who I wanted the party nominee to be. I would be more likely to vote Republican in the general election. And given that these are two swing states I cannot understand what seems to be the party's foolhardiness, rules or no rules. I am sure the Republican party of both states is delighted with the DNC's decision!

Also I have never understood why it is so important to the DNC to protect the rights of New Hampshire and Iowa to have the first primary/ caucus...

It seems to me that there is stuff going on behind the scenes that I don't understand, and if you can shed any light on it that would be great!

Anonymous said...

I am a loyal democrat. I want us to beat the republicans. Sometimes, when I can, I give a small donation to the party. Usually I am emailed by Howard Dean. I remember Mr. Dean from when he was a populist candidate in the last election and I respect his judgment and integrity. Today, and I believe yesterday, and the day before as well Mr. Dean asked me to donate to help fight John McCain. I believe that this is a necessary battle that all democrats must participate in, from all states. I want to make this donation, I really do. That is why I am going to give Mr. Dean and the DNC my donation, but not without a condition that I believe should be met. I am going to tell the DNC that I will donate $10 (which is all I am able to at this time) only after the DNC has announced that the delegates from Florida and Michigan have been seated. I believe it is only fair that if we help the DNC, then the DNC should help us too. They say they want to run a 50 State campaign, right on their website. There website is http://www.democrats.org/. I think we should hold them to their promise to our party. So I call upon all of you who read my post to pass it along and email or call Mr. Dean and the DNC and pledge your donation to fight John McCain and the republican party, but only after the Florida and Michigan delegates have been seated. If you are able to donate more money, then pledge more money, (lots of money if you have it, it is for a good cause) but let him know that your donation comes with a price. Show him what it will cost him to cast aside these voters in Florida and Michigan who are loyal party members. These people's voices must be heard, they are part of our party and the future of our party. Donate to make sure that we are the party of all the people. Here is a link for you to tell Mr. Dean to seat the delegates if he wants your support.
http://www.democrats.org/page/petition/chairman
Or you can call the DNC number for problems or questions about contributions and tell them about you dilemma. That number is 877-336-7200.

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