President Biden’s performance at last night’s CNN presidential debate has left Democrats facing the possibility of a change in their presidential nominee.
This guide will explain how this unusual behavior occurs.
Biden’s ‘disastrous’ debate performance sparks media mayhem, calls for him to withdraw from 2024 election
If Biden wants to remain on the ballot before the Democratic National Convention vote
Biden is currently the Democratic front-runner, having secured an overwhelming majority of the Democratic delegates awarded after state primaries.
Former President Donald Trump is also now the presumptive nominee.
Democratic National Committee rules give those delegates nomination power.
President Biden participated in the CNN presidential debate at CNN Studios in Atlanta on June 27, 2024. Biden’s performance at the debate raised concerns within the Democratic Party about the possibility of him being replaced as the nominee. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
Delegates “must act according to their conscience and reflect the sentiments of the people who elected them,” meaning those who voted in the Democratic primary.
In other words, as long as Biden wants to remain on the ballot, delegates are expected to vote for him.
The rules do not impose a legal obligation on delegates to vote for the candidate they have pledged to support, meaning mass defections are at least possible in theory.
The party will formally nominate Biden in a roll call vote of delegates.
A raspy-voiced Biden stumbles off the ground as he takes on Trump in the first 2024 presidential debate
This typically takes place during party conventions, which for Democrats begin the week of August 19th.
But this year, Democrats plan to hold a “virtual” roll call vote by Aug. 7 to comply with Ohio’s ballot access deadline.
That means if Biden agrees, he will likely become the nominee no later than August 7th.
If Biden leaves the Democratic National Convention before the roll call
If Biden steps down before the roll call, his delegates will no longer pledge their votes to him, effectively turning it into “election season.”
Candidates who are eligible to become president, including those who did not run in the presidential primary, may run and delegates may vote for them.
Clearly, Biden’s support will be crucial for any of these candidates.
On June 27, 2024, President Biden spoke at the CNN studios in Atlanta, Georgia, during the first presidential debate for the 2024 election against former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. (Getty Images)
The most logical candidate to win the endorsement would be Vice President Kamala Harris, but Biden could choose anyone.
If Biden resigns, dies or becomes “disabled” after the Democratic National Convention roll call
If candidates are changed after the list vote, it will be even more politically disastrous.
DNC rules give the committee broad powers to replace candidates if they die, resign or become “disabled”: “In the event that the party’s nominee for president or vice president dies, resigns or becomes disabled after the adjournment of the national convention, the national chairman of the Democratic National Committee, in consultation with the Democratic leadership in the United States Congress and the Democratic Governors Association, shall report the matter to the Democratic National Committee, which shall have the authority to fill the vacancy.”
Harris campaigned with Biden at Girard College in Philadelphia on May 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
If political parties choose to invoke this clause, the scope of “disability” will be subject to fierce debate.
But if any of those three conditions are met, party chairman Jaime Harrison will consult with Democratic leaders and recommend a new candidate to the Democratic National Committee, which will decide on a new nominee.
Again, given her current position within the Biden administration, Harris seems the most likely candidate, but we don’t know what will happen.
Biden made a surprising omission while claiming that no soldiers had been killed “anywhere in the world” during his term.
What if Biden resigns, dies, or becomes “disabled” after the ballots are printed?
If any of these conditions occur after the general election ballots have been printed, and/or it is too late to change the names of the candidates printed on those ballots, the mechanism for the DNC to replace Biden would be the same.
In this scenario, the party would have to inform voters that even if they voted for Joe Biden, the committee chose someone else as its nominee.
After the election, the party would have to instruct its Electoral College electors to vote for its new candidate.
The confusion such last-minute moves will cause among voters will make an already difficult election campaign even more difficult.
And because of the unprecedented nature of such a move, it would almost certainly be litigated before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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