Should the Democrat party’s presidential primary calendar be upended? President Joe Biden says yes.
Biden has called for an upheaval to the primary calendar in terms of how states should be ordered, elevating South Carolina to the first spot, moving the swing states of Georgia and Michigan up to the early slate, and putting Iowa back in the pack.
The proposal made by the sitting president came out last night ahead of a Democratic Party gathering to vote to shake up the order of states on the upcoming nomination calendar for the 2024 election.
Biden’s plan was revealed to party members but not released publicly.
For decades, presidential hopefuls have faced their first tests with voters in the heavily white states of Iowa and New Hampshire. In a letter to the committee endorsing an overhaul of the calendar, Biden stressed the party’s diversity.
In proposing a new shakeup, Biden has set off a frenzied scramble among competing early states that are apoplectic over the proposal.
In a letter Thursday to the DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee, Biden, who did not specify his preferred order of states, wrote, “For decades, Black voters, in particular, have been the backbone of the Democratic Party but have been pushed to the back of the early primary process.”
He also said Democrats “should no longer allow caucuses as part of our nominating process,” dealing an expected blow to Iowa.
Party members debating the future of their nominating process have been anxiously waiting on word from the White House ahead of a key meeting today.
The reshuffling, during which Democratic party insiders expect to be formally proposed at a DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting that starts today as well, is aimed at simultaneously enhancing the influence of nonwhite voters in the nomination process and ensuring Democrats pick standard-bearers who can compete effectively against Republicans in battleground states.
Final ratification will not take place until the next meeting of the full DNC early next year, but the White House endorsement paved the way for the new plan and the elevation of certain states.
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