Florida Dems will choose delegates in mini-election

Democrats across Florida will be picking their national convention delegates next month in a process far different — and with a bit less intrigue — than the GOP’s.

Unlike Republicans, whose delegates are picked by local party officials, Democrats will hold elections of its general members to pick most of its delegates, not including their already anointed superdelegates and others to be chosen later by the elected delegates.

Any registered Democrat can vote in the elections, which will be held May 7 in each of Florida’s 27 congressional districts. In the 2nd District, elections will be held in three cities: Tallahassee, Monticello and Panama City.

Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho will run the local election, though the Democratic Party will pick up the tab. The election in Tallahassee will be held 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Leon County Voting Operations Center in Cross Creek Square, 2990 Apalachee Parkway.

Serving as a national convention delegate this summer in Philadelphia is a task coveted by some of Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders’ biggest supporters and most active volunteers, including a number from Tallahassee.

Dave Jacobsen, a retired state worker, applied to run as one of Clinton’s delegates. Before the Florida primary last month, he helped open Clinton’s Tallahassee office and organize phone banks and campaign events. One of the former secretary of state’s key field people stayed at his house for a month leading up to the primary.

“I want to be there when we (nominate) who I hope will be the nation’s first female president of the United States,” said Jacobsen, president of the Democratic Club of North Florida and a regional AFSCME retirees group. “It would be a great honor for me. As I always say, Hillary is fighting for us, and I’m fighting for her.”

Tabitha Frazier, a Democratic state committeewoman, applied to run as a delegate for Sanders. She served as a one-woman support group for college students volunteering for the Vermont senator, donating a home she owns for their use as an unofficial campaign headquarters in Tallahassee. She also helped hundreds register to vote.

“I’m definitely a Bernie person,” she said. “That’s the direction I’d like to see my country and my party head. That being said, if I get chosen to go up there, it might not be my candidate. I might be asked to vote for Hillary. And I think Hillary is 1,000 times better than anything on the Republican side. No matter what, it will be historic.”

Clinton has held onto her delegate lead despite losing the past seven of eight state primaries and caucuses to Sanders. Heading into Tuesday’s crucial New York primary, Clinton has 1,292 of the 2,383 delegates she needs to win the nomination, not including superdelegates, while Sanders has 1,042.

On March 15, Clinton scored a decisive victory in the Florida primary, winning more than 64 percent of the vote. Because Democrats assign delegates proportionately, Clinton will get 141 of Florida’s 214 delegates, while Sanders will get the remaining 73.

Six of the delegates, four for Clinton and two for Sanders, will be elected from the 2nd Congressional District. They’re evenly split by gender, which means Clinton will have two male and two female delegates, while Sanders will have one male and one female.

How it works

District-level delegate hopefuls had to apply by earlier this month to run for election, and their names were sent for review to the Clinton and Sanders campaigns, which can strike prospective delegates. Applicants will find out Wednesday whether they were approved to run.

Democrats must request either a Clinton or Sanders ballot when they go to vote. They must vote for two women and two men if they’re in the Clinton camp or one woman and one man if they’re on Sanders’ side. The top vote-getters for each gender slot wins.

The candidates can bring along signs, buttons and other campaign materials, and the party advises them to have a stump speech ready. Some bring along enticements like cookies.

The smartest candidates run on unofficial slates, teaming up with other candidates to hit as many demographic groups as possible to maximize support, said Jon Ausman, Florida’s longest-serving Democratic National Committee member and a Clinton superdelegate.

“If you’re on the Clinton side, you create a slate of two women and two men,” he said. “You get all your friends — all four people on that slate — to bring as many people as you can.”

The elections will determine who will fill 140 of Florida’s delegate slots; the remaining 74 delegates, including positions set aside for elected officials, will be picked by the elected delegates when they convene in late May in Orlando. During the meeting, delegates will try to make sure diversity goals are met, including representation of African Americans, gays and lesbians, young people and veterans.

The delegates aren’t strictly bound to vote for either Clinton or Sanders, though they’re pledged to do so, said Scott Arceneaux, executive director of the Florida Democratic Party.

“The delegates can vote for anyone,” he said. “But they have pledged themselves to one candidate or another, so they’ve given their word they’re going to vote a certain way. So that means if we go to multiple ballots, they’re free to change the way they want to vote. It’s not common to have defections. Almost always, people follow through on their pledge.”

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or follow @JeffBurlew on Twitter.

CD2 election details

Elections for Democratic National Convention delegates will be held 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 7, at the following locations:

• Voting Operations Center, Cross Creek Square, 2990 Apalachee Parkway, Tallahassee.

• A.D. Harris Learning Village, 819 E. 11th St., Panama City.

• Jefferson County Public Library, 375 S. Water St., Monticello.