The DNC Nominating Process: Superdelegates’ superpowers
(Aug. 1, 2008) The 2008 battle for the Democratic Presidential nomination, with all its individual and media attention, has exposed the institution of the "superdelegate" to unprecedented scholarly, media and popular attention. College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Associate Professor Tony Robinson explained to about 25 people exactly who these superdelegates are and why they are so powerful that each of their votes for presidential candidates is equal to about 10,000 votes of normal citizens.
Robinson provided participants at the July 31 Lunch, Link and Learn a bit of the history and intention of the Democratic superdelegates. The political scientist argued that the idea of the superdelegate stems from the “republican theory of government,” which assumes that “you can’t trust the people directly” so public opinion must be filtered through wise leaders.
“The institution of the superdelegate is a disaster waiting to happen,” said Robinson. On one hand, the superdelegate who promises to abide by the people’s choice is “irrelevant, annoying and takes time and energy,” he argued. On the other hand, superdelegates have the influence to easily overturn the popular vote. More often than not, that flip triggers what Robinson calls a “Democratic self-destruction button.”
America saw that button detonate a wave of disaster during the 1968 Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago. The popular vote for Eugene McCarthy was overturned and the party instead nominated Hubert Humphrey. The decision was a huge upset, resulting in three days of violent rioting and the eventual loss of the election to Republican Richard Nixon.
In party comparison, Republicans rely substantially less on the vote of superdelegates. Whereas superdelegates make up a stifling 20 percent of the nominating vote in the Democratic Party, they are allowed a mere 5 percent from Republicans. The Republican nominating process is ironically “more democratic” than that of the Democrats, Robinson said.
“It’s time to abolish the superdelegate,” he said.
The lecture is part of Lunch, Link & Learn: Brown Bag Lecture Series organized by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. For more information, visit http://thunder1.cudenver.edu/clas/lunchLinkLearn.html.