The casual viewer's guide to the Democratic convention

Luke Skywalker · Jul 24, 2016

{vb:raw ozzmodz_postquote}:

In this Tuesday, June 21, 2016 file photo, Taylor Hickman an artist coordinated by the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program paints a donkey sculpture that will be placed throughout the city for the 2016 Democratic National Convention, in Philadelphia.*(Photo: Matt Rourke, AP)

[h=2]Everyone is talking about the conventions, and I know I'm supposed to know this —*but*what are they again?[/h]Remember what your sixth-grade social studies*teacher said: There's no silly question except the one you don't ask. The conventions — each party has their own — are basically a big shindigs*for the parties*to celebrate*who they’ve chosen to represent them in the general election. They’re also when the nominee becomes official and the party’s official platform is decided.
They both take place Monday through Thursday — the Republicans just had theirs in Cleveland last*week, the Democrats kick off Monday in Philadelphia.*The nominee, vice presidential nominee and other party leaders speak, along with a whole lot of people you have never heard of who somehow earned five*minutes in the spotlight. When there aren’t big speeches there are lots of parties and events and everyone celebrates being a [insert whatever your party’s animal is here].
USA TODAY
The weird, wacky and wild from the Cleveland Republican Convention

[h=2]But don’t we know Hillary Clinton is going to be the Democratic nominee?[/h]Well, yes, but it’s not official. Have you noticed reporters have been using the word “presumptive” over the last few*months to describe Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton? That’s because until the conventions the delegates (more on these people later) hadn’t officially voted. Donald Trump just became his party’s nominee last week,*and as soon as the delegates vote in Philadelphia, Hillary Clinton will be the official nominee for Democrats. And then we’re taking a break from typing “presumptive” until 2020.
USA TODAY
Was Trump's speech the longest ever?

[h=2]How does the vote happen?[/h]The vote occurs during “roll call,” when each state announces the votes of its*its delegates. Once Hillary Clinton hits the magic number (2,383) of pledged and superdelegates (these are different!*see below) you’ll see her on the ballot as the Democratic choice come November.
[h=2]So who are these delegates?[/h]The delegates are people who were chosen during the primaries and caucuses to represent the Democratic party at the conventions. They'll vote for who the party wants to be the nominee, and they are assigned to vote the way their state did. (Except for superdelegates, who can vote however they want.) There will be about*6,000 delegates and alternates at the event in total, according to Democratic National Convention deputy press secretary Morgan Finkelstein.
[h=2]Wait. How are superdelegates different?[/h]You may have heard Bernie Sanders and his supporters railing about*these guys throughout the campaign season. The superdelegates are*a group of elected officials and party leaders who get to vote for whoever they want, no matter the outcome of the primary in their state.* Clinton has the lion's share of these delegates, which Sanders has ended his campaign,**but even when Sanders was still competing in the race MOST of them still backed Clinton —> see previous point about why he didn’t like them.
USA TODAY
Clinton-Kaine ticket makes debut in Miami

[h=2]Got it. (I think.) So what's*Bernie going to do?[/h]Sanders knows that he won’t be the Democratic nominee, but he literally is taking it all the way to the convention (he promised this often, while on the campaign trail).*He told USA TODAY he wants everyone to see what his team has accomplished when the delegations announce their votes for him. There will be nearly 1,900 delegates casting votes for him during the convention.
“I want the country and the world and our people to appreciate the kind of success we’ve had,” he said.
[h=2]OK. So Bernie and Hillary will be there, plus all those*delegates, but who else is participating?[/h]The Democratic National Convention committee is expecting up to 50,000 convention participants, of which 15,000-20,000 will be journalists, according to Finkelstein. Wish us luck on battling it out for stories and free coffee.
[h=2]That sounds like there’s going to be a lot going on. What’s the security plan?[/h]Conventions are known for attracting protesters outside, and this time around is no exception. The Secret Service has been preparing for these conventions for the past year, and they’re planning for the worst-case scenario. U.S.*Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy told USA TODAY that they’ve been preparing for “similar events” to the shooting police officers in Dallas, Texas earlier this month.
"You look at snipers, you look at mass attacks, you look at protest groups large and small. You look at any possibility that's out there,” Clancey said.
They aren’t releasing the official number of officers working the convention, but there are 73 government agencies involved in security. There will also be security cameras and observation platforms watching people.
This all worked out pretty well in Cleveland where the Republican convention went on without any significant disruption from protesters. But hey, Philly: Coming your way next!
USA TODAY
Expect heavy security at DNC in Philadelphia

[h=2]Can I bring my selfie-stick?[/h]Nope (and why do you have one?). The list of items that are banned is pretty long, and a few of them are strange. The full-list can be found here. You can’t bring umbrellas, animals*or cans either. Or animals holding umbrellas, for that matter.
[h=2]Darn. I still want to go. Can I?[/h]The convention itself is closed to the public, but that doesn’t mean you can’t head to Philly to participate in all of the events surrounding the convention. But be warned that*with 50,000 people taking over the city it’s pretty hard to get a hotel room — you may have to look outside the city, which at this point means something like New Jersey.
[h=2]Fine. I'm ready for the handy-dandy glossary of key terms now.[/h]Here you go!
Delegate:*A delegate is a representative elected or chosen from the Democratic Party to attend the convention.
Superdelegate:*An automatic delegate to the convention. Unlike delegates bound by their states, a superdelegate is not required to pledge their support to any presidential candidate beforehand.
Alternate delegate:*Serves as a substitute if a delegate cannot make it to the convention. At the Democratic convention, there are alternate delegates for each state, Washington, Puerto Rico and the U.S. territories.
Democratic National Committee:*The committee that governs the Democratic Party and is responsible for overseeing the writing and promoting of the party platform. It is made up of over 200 members in all 50 states and U.S. territories.
Party platform:*A statement of the party’s principles and goals.
Roll call:*During the roll call vote, each state is asked to come forward and declare their delegate votes for the candidates.
Presidential nominee:*The candidate who wins the majority vote of delegates at the convention.
Presumptive nominee: The*candidate who is presumed to win the nomination due to a commanding majority of convention delegates or because the last serious challenger has withdrawn.
Primary election:*An election where voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate to run in the general election.
General election:*It takes place every four years in November. The public will cast votes that determine who will be sent to the Electoral College, which will vote directly for president.

Powered By WizardRSS.com | Full Text RSS Feed

The casual viewer's guide to the Democratic convention

Luke Skywalker

Super Moderator