Bob Mulholland Answers Questions: California’s February 5 Presidential Primary and Delegates

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Bob Mulholland
Campaign Advisor,
California Democratic Party

Will the candidates who have dropped out (Biden, Dodd, Kucinich, and Richardson) still be on the California statewide ballot?

Yes, and they will all get some votes – very few though.

Will the Independent votes be counted the same as Democratic votes?

Yes. If one precinct has 88 ballots cast by registered Democrats and 12 ballots cast by Independents for a total of 100, then 100 ballots are counted equally.

Does California have a Winner-Take-All (WTA) system to allocate delegates?

No, but the Republicans still use Winner-Take-All.

The Democratic National Committee has prohibited WTA since the 1972 Convention.

We use a proportional system – candidates who get 15 percent or more are entitled to delegates.

Democrats use the “15 Percent Rule” nationwide in all 50 states plus D.C., Democrats Abroad and the four U.S. territories.

In the Republican Party, the only votes that count toward delegates are the ones cast for the winner, either at the statewide or CD level, while Democrats award delegates to all the candidates with 15 percent or more of the vote.

How does the “15 Percent Rule” actually work?

From the voter’s point of view, it’s very simple – they just vote for their presidential candidate, and the delegate allocation is handled by the DNC Rules and the approved California Democratic Party Delegate Selection Plan.

A presidential candidate who does not do well statewide could win just 15 percent in only one Congressional District (CD) in the whole state and that candidate will get one delegate in that CD.