Delegate Selection Process

Becoming a Delegate: 2008

(Rick Althaus--Cape Girardeau, MO)

This page describes the process that a person follows in order to become a delegate to the national party convention, at which the party's selection of Presidential nominee is formalized. The two main parties use different rules, and those rules are often modified for each election cycle. This page describes the process as I experienced it, during the Spring of 2008, as a participant in the Democratic Party delegate selection process in Missouri.

Step 1: The Presidential Primary Missouri was one of 23 states that held their primary or caucus on Tuesday, February 5th. For several decades, the date on which the most states hold their delegate selection events has been referred to as "Super Tuesday." (In reality, these events are actually the first stage of a multi-step process that each state uses to select delegates. The primary or initial caucus determines the allocation of delegates between the Presidential candidates, though the actual delegates are not selected until later stages, as described below.)

Missouri Democratic Primary Results:
Barack Obama	406, 917	49.3 %
Hillary Clinton	395,185	47.9 %
John Edwards	16,763	2.0 %
7 others (incl. "uncommitted")	6,185	0.8 %
total	825,050	100 %

The national Democratic Party rules forbid the use of "winner-take-all" primaries and caucuses. (The Republican rules permit them, but don't require them.) A Democratic candidate must receive at least 15 % of the votes at a given level (statewide, congressional district) in order to receive any delegates at that level.

Step 2: The County Caucus (February 28th) The state party headquarters in Jefferson City informs the party leaders in each county how many delegates they are allowed to select to attend the Congressional District caucus, and how those delegates are to be divided between the competing Presidential candidates. These allocations are determined mostly by population, and not solely by vote results. (In Cape Girardeau County, Clinton received 56.6 % of the total, and Obama received 39.4 %. However, the Party permitted Cape County Democrats to select twice as many Clinton delegates as Obama delegates.) In addition to attending the Congressional district caucus, each of the delegates chosen at this level is also automatically a delegate to the state Democratic convention. [Note: In the larger metropolitan areas, there are precinct-level caucuses held a couple of weeks before the county caucus.]

Allocation of delegates from Cape County to the Eighth District Caucus:
Barack Obama	4 delegates		4 alternates
Hillary Clinton	8 delegates		8 alternates

		At the beginning of the evening's caucus, the Chair of the County Democratic Committee explained the rules and process to those in attendance.
		Any registered voter who declares a Democratic identification (and who shows up on time!) is welcome to participate in the county caucus. This year, there were about thirty who chose to do so in Cape Girardeau County.
		Those in attendance divided themselves into two groups, one supporting each Presidential candidate. This is the Clinton caucus. These people deliberated and selected the eight Clinton delegates and eight Clinton alternates who were expected to attend the Congressional District caucus a few weeks later.

Step 3: Preparing for the Congressional District Caucus

The Congressional District Caucus was to be a meeting of dozens of Democratic delegates from the 28 counties that make up the 8th district. I figured that there would be a lot of interest among the participants in becoming delegates to the national convention. Therefore, I thought it would be a good idea to begin a sort of campaign among the other 8th District Clinton delegates to ask for their support (and vote). I found as many names and addresses of Clinton delegates as I could, and I mailed each of them a letter, along with a "campaign" flyer, during the week prior to the meeting.

Step 4: The Congressional District Caucus (March 27th) The state party headquarters in Jefferson City informs the party leaders in each Congressional district how many delegates they are allowed to select to attend the National Democratic Convention. The number of delegates each Congressional district receives is determined largely by how strongly the voters in that district have voted Democratic. For example, in 2008, the largely Republican Seventh (southwest MO) and Eighth (southeast MO) districts each were permitted to select only four delegates to the national convention, while the more strongly Democratic First district of north St. Louis City and County was allocated seven delegates. (This give the bigger "say" to the areas that deliver the most Democratic votes.) The allocation of those delegates between the competing Presidential candidates is determined by vote results in that district. (At the Eighth District caucus, there were to be three Clinton delegates and one Obama delegate chosen to attend the National convention.)

	At the beginning of the evening's caucus, the Chair of the Eighth District Democratic Committee explained the rules and process to those in attendance.
	There were about 100 delegates (divided about two to one in favor of Clinton) from the 28 counties in attendance at the meeting, which was held in Van Buren, a fairly central location in the district. Obama delegates sat on one side of the room, and Clinton delegates on the other.
About six Obama delegates competed for the one national convention slot, while about twenty Clinton delegates competed for the three positions for the national convention. Each person wanting to become a national delegate had to first be nominated by someone, and then give a brief "campaign" speech. After the speeches, the Obama supporters voted on their national delegate, and the Clinton supporters voted on their national delegates. I was selected to be one of the three Clinton delegates.

Step 5: The Missouri State Democratic Convention (May 10th) All of the delegates chosen at the county level around the state are automatically also delegates to the Party's state convention, usually held in a central location. This year, the convention was held in the Holiday Inn convention center in Columbia, MO. There were over 700 delegates in attendance. At the convention, there were several items of business transacted over what turned out to be about a nine-hour process. There were plenty of rousing speeches delivered by Party elders, including Sen. Claire McCaskill, Rep. Ike Skelton, and former Representative (and two-time Presidential candidate) Richard Gephardt. A nominating committee recommended a slate of 11 Missouri Democrats to be approved as Presidential electors. (These are the people who would cast Missouri's 11 electoral votes, should the Democratic presidential candidate win the state in November.) In addition, four of the six Missourians who serve on the Democratic National Committee were voted on. Finally, there were 16 at-large delegates chosen to attend the national convention. They were divided equally between Clinton and Obama, reflecting the very close statewide primary result.

	Delegates from around the state were required to check in early in order to receive their credentials and information packets.
	Before and during the actual proceedings of the convention, candidates and vendors staffed tables for the delegates to patronize. Campaign buttons are always popular.
	The convention hall was packed with delegates. This photograph shows only part of the Clinton delegate seating area, which was approximately the same size as the Obama area.

Summary: The Delegate Selection Process

The delegate selection process is summarized by the graphic below. Delegates chosen at the county level attend both the congressional district and state level meetings. The bulk of delegates to the national convention are chosen at the congressional district level, though a few "at-large" delegates are chosen at the state level. (The so-called "super delegates" are automatically delegates because they are elected officials or party leaders. They don't go through the selection process below.)