Democrats Protest Early Nomination Roll CallDemocrats Protest Early Nomination Roll Call A group of Democratic House members is attempting to block the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from holding a virtual vote to nominate President Joe Biden in July, claiming it would suppress debate and stifle potential change in the Democratic ticket. The letter, drafted by Rep. Jared Huffman, argues that there is no legal justification for accelerating the nomination process nearly a month before the August convention. It warns that the plan could “have a chilling effect on the party process” and “prematurely halt any potential change” to the presidential nominee. As of Tuesday, over 20 Democratic lawmakers had signed the letter. The overlap between this group and lawmakers who have publicly called for Biden to step down is unclear. However, Reps. Susan Wild, Mike Quigley, and Pat Ryan have expressed support for the letter and have also urged Biden to abandon his reelection bid. The DNC remains determined to move forward with the virtual roll call to prevent potential ballot access issues in Ohio. DNC Chair Jaime Harrison emphasized that the decision was made in response to concerns that Biden would otherwise be ineligible for the state’s ballot under a 90-day nomination requirement. Ohio has since amended the rules to a 65-day requirement. However, the letter argues that this change eliminates the need for an early roll call. Three former DNC chairs—Donna Brazile, Howard Dean, and Terry McAuliffe—countered in a separate letter that any delay in nominating Biden could disenfranchise voters and hinder Democratic victory. Despite the protests, the DNC has not announced a formal date for the virtual roll call.
According to multiple reports, a group of Democrats in the House of Representatives are attempting to launch a Hail Mary campaign to thwart a plan by the Democratic National Committee to crown President Joe Biden as their nominee, just weeks before the party’s convention in August.
The letter, first obtained by The New York Timesdemands that the DNC put the brakes on a virtual vote, which is expected to confirm Biden’s nomination as early as July 21.
“There is no legal justification for this extraordinary and unprecedented action that would effectively accelerate the nomination process by nearly a month,” the letter reads, going on to call the plan a “terrible idea” that would have a chilling effect on the party process, “stifle debate, and prematurely halt any potential change to the Democratic ticket.”
The Time reported that the letter was drafted by Rep. Jared Huffman, who began circulating it to his colleagues on Monday. (The Associated Press disputed that, saying Huffman did not “take the lead” in distributing the letter.) The California Democrat denied personally drafting the letter in an interview with Axios.
“I just think it’s a terrible idea for the DNC to do this,” he said. “I think people are just seeing through it, and at a time when we have a huge enthusiasm gap with Republicans, a stunt like this is just going to make it worse.”
More than 20 Democratic lawmakers had signed the letter as of Tuesday, according to NBC News. As many as 19 Democrats on Capitol Hill have publicly called for Biden to step aside and let another nominee take his place, an outburst that follows the president’s poor debate performance last month.
The overlap between the group of outspoken lawmakers and signatories of the letter wasn’t immediately clear. Reps. Susan Wild (D-PA), Mike Quigley (D-IL) and Pat Ryan (D-NY) all told Axios they planned to sign. Quigley and Ryan have called on Biden to abandon his reelection bid, while Wild expressed concerns about his electability.
“Regardless of whether President Biden remains our nominee, Democratic unity and enthusiasm will be critical between now and November 5,” the letter stressed, “respectfully but firmly” requesting that the virtual roll call be canceled.
“The Democratic Party should nominate its presidential candidate at the Democratic National Convention, in the usual order, as we have always done,” the report said.
But DNC leaders are determined to move forward, four people familiar with the matter told the Time.
“We will certainly not leave the fate of this election to MAGA Republicans in Ohio who attempted to keep President Biden off the general election ballot,” committee chair Jaime Harrison told the newspaper in a statement. “We are moving forward with a virtual roll call, and the timeline for that process remains on track and unchanged from when the DNC made that decision.”
The decision to hold the early roll call was announced by the party in May, in response to procedural concerns that Biden would otherwise be ineligible for Ohio’s ballot. Frank LaRose, Ohio’s Republican secretary of state, had threatened to remove Biden’s name from the ballot if he was not nominated at least 90 days before the Nov. 5 general election, under state law.
The state has since amended the rules on this issue, reducing the period to 65 days. This means that it is no longer necessary to hold the roll call before the convention, the letter argues.
Not every Democratic official feels that way, however. Three former DNC chairs—Donna Brazile, Howard Dean and Terry McAuliffe—sent a separate letter to committee members urging them to support the roll call, ABC News reported Tuesday.
“Any other approach risks disenfranchising millions of voters and clouding the Democratic path to victory,” their letter said, citing ongoing concerns about Ohio’s certification process. The law reducing the nomination requirement to 65 days doesn’t go into effect until Aug. 31, after the Democratic National Convention has taken place.
According to the DNC, no formal date has yet been set for Apple Day.
