Superdelegates Oppose Handing Bernie the Nomination if Candidate Falls Short in Delegate Count

Bronson Stocking | February 27, 2020 12:45 PM

For many in the Democratic Party, socialism is a bridge too far. The New York Times has interviewed several Democratic leaders, including 93 superdelegates, a majority of who said they oppose handing Bernie Sanders the party's nomination should the democratic socialist fail to reach a majority of delegates before the national convention in July.

The Times found overwhelming opposition to the idea of giving the presidential nomination to Bernie Sanders should the candidate lead in the delegate count but fail to obtain a decisive majority, teeing up a brokered convention. While such a scenario is considered unlikely, the prospect of a Sanders' nomination and a still-crowded Democratic field, party leaders are giving serious consideration to such a possibility.

(Via The New York Times)

From California to the Carolinas, and North Dakota to Ohio, the party leaders say they worry that Mr. Sanders, a democratic socialist with passionate but limited support so far, will lose to President Trump, and drag down moderate House and Senate candidates in swing states with his left-wing agenda of “Medicare for all” and free four-year public college. ...
Jay Jacobs, the New York State Democratic Party chairman and a superdelegate, echoing many others interviewed, said that superdelegates should choose a nominee they believed had the best chance of defeating Mr. Trump if no candidate wins a majority of delegates during the primaries. ...
In a reflection of the establishment’s wariness about Mr. Sanders, only nine of the 93 superdelegates interviewed said that Mr. Sanders should become the nominee purely on the basis of arriving at the convention with a plurality, if he was short of a majority.

Sanders, the front-runner, argues that the candidate with the most votes should be the candidate to win the Party's nomination. But his opponents want to see the nomination process follow established protocols. During a brokered convention, candidates have another opportunity to win over delegates, giving them another shot at clinching the party's nomination.