With just months to go until the presidential election and once-favorite President Biden dropping out of the race, the Democrats’ next move may seem somewhat unclear.
Following Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race, here’s what you need to know about the Democratic nomination process.
Biden was the party’s presumptive nominee, having secured most of the delegates allotted to him after this year’s primaries, but now that the president has withdrawn, delegates no longer pledge allegiance to him and are free to vote as they please.
Polls show a majority of Democrats think Kamala Harris would be a good president
Biden has suspended his re-election campaign. (Getty Images)
Now, any qualified candidate can run for the nomination. Names often mentioned in the media include Vice President Kamala Harris, Governor Gavin Newsom of California (D), and Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan (D). If Biden endorses a candidate, that person would have a clear advantage.
To become a candidate, you must receive the signatures of at least 300 delegates, with a maximum of 50 from each state delegate.
Biden’s Democratic supporters feel a presidential transition is “inevitable”
Gov. Tim Walz is co-chair of the Democratic National Committee’s Rules Committee. (AP Photo/Steve Karnowski, File)
To win the nomination, a candidate must receive the votes of a majority of pledged delegates in a party roll call vote. This is the vote of 1,976 or more pledged delegates. This is not a “general” or “official” vote.
MSNBC guest reveals enthusiasm gap between Democrats and Republicans
Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom, Gretchen Whitmer and Pete Buttigieg are being considered as possible candidates to replace Biden. (Getty Images)
Those votes, the Democratic primaries, are already happening throughout 2024. Biden has won almost all of them, and therefore won nearly all of the pledged Democratic delegates.
The only step left in the process is for delegates to formally nominate a candidate in a party “roll call vote,” a normal part of the nomination process and one that would have happened even if Biden hadn’t ended his campaign.
If no candidate receives a majority on the first ballot, multiple ballots are held, and superdelegates can also vote. At the Democratic Convention, superdelegates are automatically entitled delegates, such as party chairs, governors, and members of Congress.
Biden has been called on by dozens of Democrats to stop campaigning. (Reuters/Tom Brenner)
The deadline to block or bar other eligible Democratic candidates from appearing on the general election ballot has not passed.
Democrats are currently expected to formally nominate their candidates in a “virtual” roll call in August before their convention.
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However, processes and timelines are subject to change.
Any subsequent change of candidate would be decided at the Democratic National Convention, which would surely be a political disaster and could also create legal and logistical challenges over time.
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