Despite big wins on election day for #Democrats, a small group of people continue to argue for major changes to the party through the Dem Unity Commission. Some proposed changes are getting rid of superdelegates and more caucuses. Let's discuss what these changes could mean /1
One proposed change is to remove super delegates from the primary nominating process for president. Supers are mostly elected representatives and major party members who can vote for whomever they want at the convention /2 dailykos.com/stories/2008/2…
Super delegates have never overturned the popular vote but do provided a fail-safe option in case the party needs them (Trump anyone?). They also help diversity in delegates because people dont need to compete w/ elected reps to go to the convention /3
The CBC supports supers so reps dont have to compete against their own constituents to participate at the convention, also increasing constituent involvement. /4 thehill.com/blogs/ballot-b…
The next proposed reform would address open vs closed primaries and caucuses. Currently the states run their own primaries (not the party). Closed primaries increase the voting power of actual democrats and minorities w/o allowing republicans to interfere. /5
One of the worst possible changes would be a movement towards more caucuses. Caucuses decrease voter participation and increase political bullying. They make it almost impossible for people w/ disabilities, the disabled, and those who work nights to participate /6
Caucuses require people to spend hours voting and declare who they support publicly. It can lead to political bullying and intimidation /7 washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/w…
"In 2008, according to Harvard’s Patterson, the national average voter turnout in caucus states was just 6.8 percent, four times less than participation in primary states." /8 grist.org/politics/how-c…
During the 2016 primary roughly 230,000 people participated in the Democratic caucus while more than 660,000 Democratic votes were tallied in a primary that didn't even count for delegates /9 theatlantic.com/politics/archi…
A deaf voter may be unable to understand fellow voters and directions. A veteran w/ PTSD might not be able to stand in a crowded room for hours. Elderly voters and voters w/ physical impairments may not have the stamina for hours of deliberation /10 law.stanford.edu/2016/04/05/cau…
Caucuses also disenfranchise people who work nights, caretakers who can't leave their children or the elderly at home, minority voters, and people who don't want their votes to be public. For ex women might not feel safe voting differently from their husbands /11
While these proposed changes wont help, there are things we can do to encourage voter participation and enfranchisements. Democrats must fight voter suppression laws and make voting and registration easier across the country /12
Automatic voter registration would eliminate difficulties in registering and increase voter participation in all elections for people that might forget to register in time /13
Eliminating #voterID laws would help millions low income, women, and minorities vote without obstacles. Strict voter ID states could disenfranchise up to 1/3 of women voters who dont have matching names, trans people w/o matching gender ID, etc /14
estimates that 6 million people were prevented from voting due to felon disenfranchisement laws. Some states like Florida have no mechanism for automatic felon enfranchisement /15 sentencingproject.org/publications/6…
The GAO reported in 2008 that 73% of polling places had at least 1 impediment to people w/ disabilities. A survey conducted after the 2012 election found that 30% of people w/ disabilities reported difficulty in voting /16 fivethirtyeight.com/features/one-i…
If we want to increase voter participation and win elections we must focus on enfranchising the vote of women, POC, LGBT people, low income people, and those with disabilities. Visit @ACLU @BrennanCenter @NDRNadvocates and our website americanwomensparty.org for more info
