Primary Calendar: Sue me? Sue you!
Posted: Thursday, October 04, 2007 9:23 AM by Domenico Montanaro
Filed Under:
2008
Florida Democrats aren't giving up easily. The Democratic Party is violating the Constitution and federal law by stripping 4 million Floridians of their right to vote in the presidential primary. That's according to a lawsuit Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Alcee Hastings plan to file tomorrow.
The suit will claim that the Democratic National Committee did not have the right to take away Florida's presidential delegates just because Republicans set the primary for Jan. 29th in violation of DNC rules. According to a draft copy obtained today by The Associated Press, it will also say presidential candidates were
pressured into boycotting the state, which takes away voters' rights to engage the candidates on issues important to them.
It will name the DNC and its chairman, Howard Dean, as defendants. Nelson and Hastings, both Florida Democrats, scheduled a news conference tomorrow morning to discuss the suit once it's filed.
The
New York Times takes a look. The lawsuit likely doesn't have much of a chance since parties have always been given latitude when deciding how they choose their nominees.
New Hampshire to December?
Sec/State Bill Gardner is thinking hard about the primary date, and how to handle Iowa possibly being only a few days earlier instead of the usual 8 days. "If the Iowans choose to ignore their eight-day post-caucus window law, a caucus held so shortly before New Hampshire could diminish the primary's impact because it will leave little time for Iowa losers to recover and Iowa winners to fall. It will also eliminate the traditional eight-day post-Iowa frenzy that turns the eyes of the world on New Hampshire, and New Hampshire only. And that could have an economic impact."
