Yesterday, President Biden released a letter announcing his decision to end his reelection bid. In his letter, the President wrote that he would address the nation later this week with more detail about his decision. He did not give an exact date or time. He is currently recovering from Covid at his home in Rehoboth Beach, DE.
President Biden’s decision to end his reelection bid means Democrats must now quickly find a new candidate. The Democratic National Convention’s rules committee has called a Wednesday meeting to discuss the process for picking a new nominee.
Who picks the Democratic nominee? A few thousand delegates representing voters officially decide on the party’s nominee. Typically, they choose the winner of the primary in their state. Now that Biden has ended his reelection campaign, his delegates are free agents and can choose a candidate on their own without voter input.
There are two types of delegates: 1) Pledged Delegates and 2) Automatic (or Super) Delegates. Pledged delegates commit to supporting the candidate their state voters chose. However, there is a “good conscience” clause in the Democratic party’s rules that give them some wiggle room. “All delegates to the National Convention pledged to a presidential candidate shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them.” Automatic or Superdelegates include members of Congress, President, Vice President, Governors, Democratic National Committee (DNC) members, and certain former elected officials, such as Presidents and Vice Presidents and members of congressional leadership. They are not pledged to particular candidates, although these delegates might choose to support a particular candidate. Superdelegates are not allowed to vote on the first ballot at the convention.
What is the process for selecting the Democratic nominee? Democrats must make a formal nomination, either through a virtual vote in early August, or in an “open” convention, a scenario the party has not experienced since 1968. The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is slated to take place in Chicago, IL August 19-22. Before President Biden’s announcement, the DNC had decided to confirm their nominee during a virtual roll call some time before August 7 to satisfy ballot deadlines in several states, such as Ohio. Additionally, early voting begins in some places in September, so Democratic leaders probably wanted to settle the nomination before the convention.
Open Convention: If a virtual rollcall doesn’t show a clear majority of delegates backing Harris, they may proceed to an open convention. At an open convention, candidates need 300 delegate signatures to appear on the ballot (no more than 50 signatures can come from any one state). On the first ballot, pledged delegates vote. If a majority is reached, the nominee with the majority is chosen. If a majority is not reached, there is a second ballot which superdelegates are allowed to vote along with pledged delegates. Voting continues, round after round, until a candidate gets the votes of a majority of all delegates and is named the party’s nominee.
Endorsements for Vice President Harris: President Biden officially endorsed Vice President Harris as the next Democratic nominee, and many in the Democratic party quickly endorsed Vice President Harris, including the party chairs for the 57 states and territories, the Clintons, California Governor Gavin Newsom, and NY Governor Kathy Hochul. Today, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) added her name to the list of endorsers. Biden’s endorsement does not obligate his delegates to support Harris, but they may be inclined to do as he wishes.
The campaign formerly known as Biden for President, in a filing Sunday afternoon with the Federal Election Commission, changed its name to the Harris for President campaign. That means Vice President Harris’ bid for the Democratic nomination is official, with her campaign assuming control of Biden’s campaign money ($95M+). It also allows Vice President Harris to begin raising money for her own presidential bid.
Update July 23, 2024
Last night, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) reiterated that they plan to select their presidential nominee through a virtual roll call, to be completed by August 7 (before some state ballot access deadlines).
DNC chair Jaime Harrison and DNC Rules Committee co-chair Minyon Moore laid out the new virtual format in a memo released last night. According to the memo, the DNC will use an electronic voting system for the delegates to vote. To participate in this virtual voting process, the candidate must meet three criteria: file a formal declaration of candidacy with the committee, meet the party and legal qualifications to be president, and gather a minimum of at least 300 delegates with no more than 50 delegates from one state. If there is more than one candidate, they would have an option to make their case before the delegates.
The dates for that process will be announced on Wednesday when the DNC Convention Rules Committee meets virtually. Voting by electronic ballot could be completed as soon as August 1. If more than one candidate qualifies, then the voting could be completed as late as August 7.
A vice-presidential nominee may be selected before or after the August 7 date, depending on the desires of the presidential nominee. Some of the top names mentioned in recent news coverage are Govs. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, Andy Beshear of Kentucky, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Wes Moore of Maryland, and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania; Sens. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Mark Warner of Virginia; U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg; and Admiral William McRaven.