The Democratic contest between frontrunners Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and Senator Hillary Clinton of New York has been long, grueling, brutal, and downright bloody in the political sense. There have been many interesting things both good and bad for the Democratic Party as a result of the ongoing race between Clinton and Obama.
Two major things that can and will affect the Democratic contest would be the superdelegates and the situation with both Florida and Michigan.
While the issue of the superdelegates is obvious, the issue of Florida and Michigan has been on and off. Clinton had won Florida and Michigan; but, both states were stripped of their delegates for holding their primaries too early in violation of DNC rules.
So far, Clinton has demanded that all of her delegates from Florida and Michigan to be seated. On Saturday, May 31, there will be a meeting to come up with a compromise to the dilemma at hand. However DNC Chair Howard Dean said that while there will be a compromise, the other forty-eight states need to be respected for playing by the rules.
Dean said that you cannot change the rules at the end to change the outcome of the game.
New York Governor David Paterson, a supporter of Clinton, said that Clinton herself did not object to the penalties imposed by the DNC.
This is where the differences between the campaigns of Clinton and Obama differ.
While Clinton was seeking a one-hit knockout, Obama was pacing himself. If the DNC delegate rules were like the rules used by the Republican National Committee (RNC), the one-hit knockout may have worked. But, the DNC delegate rules are proportional.
The one-hit knock out did not work. Obama on the other hand was not burning out his energy. While Clinton gambled on the Super Tuesday contests on February 5, Obama looked at the states that would hold their contests afterwards.
In short, Obama’s campaign had valuable knowledge. The campaign fully knew and understood how the nomination process worked. Tad Devine, a neutral Democratic strategist said: “They understood the nuances of it and approached it at a strategic level that the Clinton campaign did not.”
While Clinton won states, the DNC delegate rules were not winner take all. That was the case for the RNC delegate rules in which Senator John McCain of Arizona became the presumed GOP nominee.
McCain’s final opponent in the GOP primary, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee suggested that the RNC delegate rules should be like the DNC delegate rules. Clinton said that the DNC delegate rules should be like the RNC delegate rules.
When one looks at the RNC delegate rules, the contest ended quickly. If the RNC rules were like the DNC rules, McCain probably would not be the presumed GOP nominee at the moment. Perhaps the strategy of former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani would’ve worked. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney would possibly still be in the race.
Tad Devine, another neutral Democratic strategist explains that the way the DNC has its delegate rules; do not expect a quick contest. Devine said that this type will ensure that the system is fair and reflects the will on the voters.
Clinton maintained that she still holds the popular vote. But, that is still up for debate. This has been the argument that Clinton has made to the superdelegates.
Obama on the other hand presents the argument that the superdelegates should get behind the one with the most pledged delegates.
Strategically, Obama seemed to be the best candidate for such a strategy. Even a few of Clinton’s supporters have said that it was a good strategy.
In short, Obama knew the rules. Obama was the one to benefit. In Clinton’s case, her campaign struggles to remain afloat.
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