The Green Papers
Democratic Delegate Allocation - 2008

On 5 October 2007, the DNC determined that the date of Florida's 29 January 2008 primary violates party rules and has decided to strip the state of its entire delegation.

On 1 December 2007, the DNC determined that the date of Michigan's 15 January 2008 primary violates party rules and has decided to strip the state of its entire delegation.

On Saturday 31 May 2008, the Democratic Rules and Bylaws Committee decided to seat the entire Florida and Michigan delegations. However, each delegate (pledged and unpledged) will cast only ½ delegate vote.

On the day before the National Convention, 24 August 2008, the Democratic National Convention's Credentials Committee had, at the request of Senator Barack Obama, voted to restore full voting strength to the delegates from Michigan and Florida, bringing the primary dispute to closure. The panel approved the full seating of Michigan and Florida with no debate or opposing votes.

Primary Calendar

Delegate selection primaries, caucuses, and conventions will begin on the first Tuesday in February (5 February 2008) and end on the second Tuesday in June (10 June 2008). States are required to complete their process by the third Saturday in June (21 June 2008). However,

• Iowa can schedule its first tier caucuses 22 days before the window (Monday 14 January 2008),
• Nevada can schedule its first tier caucuses 17 days before the window (Saturday 19 January 2008),
• New Hampshire can hold its primary 14 days before the window (Tuesday 22 January 2008), and
• South Carolina can hold its primary 7 days before the window (Tuesday 29 January 2008).

Delegate Allocation Overview

The pledged delegate "base" allocation is determined by the jurisdiction's Presidential vote in 1996, 2000, and 2004; and the jurisdiction's electoral vote allocation. Jurisdictions beginning their process later in the cycle receive bonus delegates.

The unpledged PLEO Democratic Delegates consist of Democratic Governors, House members, Senators; DNC members; distinguished party leaders (former Democratic Presidents, Governors, Representatives, and Senators); and Add-on delegates (as voted by the DNC). Elections, appointments, and deaths from now until the 2008 convention will change these numbers.

Click here to skip to the current allocation.

Computation of (intermediate) Base Votes
for Jurisdictions with Electoral Votes

The rules of the Democratic National Convention call for the following formula to be used in determining the allocation of delegate votes to each jurisdiction sending a delegation to the Convention.

Each jurisdiction with electoral votes is assigned a number of Base (delegate) votes based on an "Allocation Factor" multiplied by 3,000 arrived at through a calculation involving the following factors:

1. State's Democratic Vote (SDV): The jurisdiction's popular vote for the Democratic candidate for President in the last three Presidential Elections (1996, 2000, and 2004).
2. Total Democratic Vote (TDV): The total popular vote for the Democratic candidate for President in the last three Presidential Elections (1996, 2000, and 2004).
3. The state's Electoral Vote (SEV).
4. The total Electoral Vote of all jurisdictions (538).

The formula for determining a jurisdiction's Allocation Factor is:

Allocation Factor = ½ × ( ( SDV ÷ TDV ) + ( SEV ÷ 538 ) )

The number of Base votes assigned to a state is Allocation Factor × 3000 (Fractions 0.5 and above are rounded to the next highest integer).

To summarize, half of a jurisdiction's base vote is determined by the number of Presidential Electors assigned to that state and half are computed by the number of people who voted for the Democratic candidate in the last three elections.

Assignments of (intermediate) Base Votes
for Jurisdictions without Electoral Votes

Jurisdictions without Electoral votes receive the following:

• American Samoa, Guam, and the Virgin Islands are each assigned 3 Base Votes.
• Democrats Abroad are assigned 6 Base Votes.
• Puerto Rico is assigned 44 Base Votes.

Computation of Bonus Base Votes

The number of Bonus Base votes for 5%, 10%, 15%, and 30% awards is the number of Base votes × 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, and 0.30 respectively (fractions 0.5 and above are rounded to the next highest integer).

Bonus Allocation

Bonus delegates are awarded to states holding their First Determining Step (start their delegate allocation process) later in the cycle. The bonus is awarded as a percentage of the base allocation of pledged delegates and applies to the district and at-large delegates. The bonus does NOT apply to the Pledged PLEO and Unpledged delegates.

The Presidential nomination cycle is divided into 3 Stages: Stage I for January, February, or March; Stage II for April; and Stage III for May or June.

If a state began their 2004 process in January, February, or March and begins their 2008 process in

• April: 15% bonus (Base × 0.15) [Stage I to Stage II]
• May or June: 30% bonus (Base × 0.3) [Stage I to Stage III]

If a state began their 2004 process in April and begins their 2008 process in

• April: 5% bonus (Base × 0.05) [Stage II]
• May or June: 30% bonus (Base × 0.3) [Stage II to Stage III]

If a state began their 2004 process in May or June and begins their 2008 process in

• May or June: 10% bonus (Base × 0.1) [Stage III]

Bonus votes are allocated to jurisdictions as district and at-large delegates.

• Bonus At-Large Delegate Votes = [5%, 10%, 15%, 30%] Bonus Base × 0.25. (Fractions 0.5 and above are rounded to the next highest integer. Should the rounding result in 0 Bonus Delegate Votes, the round the Bonus up to 1.)
• Bonus District Delegate Votes = [5%, 10%, 15%, 30%] Bonus Base - Bonus At-Large Delegate Votes. (The number of Bonus District delegates plus the number of Bonus At-Large delegates must equal the Bonus Base. Hence, the rounding favors the statewide At-Large allocation.)
• There is one exception to the above rule: South Dakota's bonus delegate is awarded as a District rather than an At-Large delegate.

Rule 20.C.1. - Sanctions

If a jurisdiction begins their delegate selection process before the "window", that jurisdiction's pledged delegate allocation is reduced by 50% and their unpledged delegates are not allowed to vote at the National Convention.

If a candidate campaigns in violation of the "window" that candidate may receive neither pledged delegates nor delegate votes from the state where the violation occurred.

Text of Rule 20.C.1.

• a. Violation of timing: In the event the Delegate Selection Plan of a state party provides or permits a meeting, caucus, convention or primary which constitutes the first determining stage in the presidential nominating process to be held prior to or after the dates for the state as provided in Rule 11 of these rules, or in the event a state holds such a meeting, caucus, convention or primary prior to or after such dates, the number of pledged delegates elected in each category allocated to the state pursuant to the Call for the National Convention shall be reduced by fifty (50%) percent, and the number of alternates shall also be reduced by fifty (50%) percent. In addition, none of the members of the Democratic National Committee and no other unpledged delegate allocated pursuant to Rule 8.A. from that state shall be permitted to vote as members of the state's delegation. In determining the actual number of delegates or alternates by which the state's delegation is to be reduced, any fraction below .5 shall be rounded down to the nearest whole number, and any fraction of .5 or greater shall be rounded up to the next nearest whole number.
• b. A presidential candidate who campaigns in a state where the state party is in violation of the timing provisions of these rules, or where a primary or caucus is set by a state's government on a date that violates the timing provisions of these rules, may not receive pledged delegates or delegate votes from that state. Candidates may, however, campaign in such a state after the primary or caucus that violates these rules. "Campaigning" for purposes of this section includes, but is not limited to, purchasing print, internet, or electronic advertising that reaches a significant percentage of the voters in the aforementioned state; hiring campaign workers; opening an office; making public appearances; holding news conferences; coordinating volunteer activities; sending mail, other than fundraising requests that are also sent to potential donors in other states; using paid or volunteer phoners or automated calls to contact voters; sending emails or establishing a website specific to that state; holding events to which Democratic voters are invited; attending events sponsored by state or local Democratic organizations; or paying for campaign materials to be used in such a state. The Rules and Bylaws Committee will determine whether candidate activities are covered by this section.

The table below shows the dates of each jurisdiction's 2004 and 2008 First Determining Step and the corresponding stage (I, II, or III).

The Bonus Delegate Detail shows the number of delegates each jurisdiction would receive with a 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, or 30% bonus. The current bonus is shown in black with other options in gray.

Computation of Delegate Votes

The 50 States and Puerto Rico are allocated District, At-Large, and PLEO delegates as follows:

• At-Large Delegate Votes = Base Votes × 0.25. (Fractions 0.5 and above are rounded to the next highest integer.)
• District Delegate Votes = Base Votes - At-Large Delegate Votes. (The number of District delegates plus the number of At-Large delegates must equal the Base. Hence, the rounding favors the statewide At-Large allocation.)
• PLEO Delegate Votes = Base Votes × 0.15. (Fractions 0.5 and above are rounded to the next highest integer.)

American Samoa, Democrats Abroad, Guam, and the Virgin Islands are allocated At-Large, and PLEO delegates as follows:

• At-Large Delegate Votes = Base Votes.
• PLEO Delegate Votes = Base × 0.15. (Fractions 0.5 and above are rounded to the next highest integer.)

When Bonus delegate votes are awarded, add the number of Bonus At-Large Delegate Votes computed to the number of At-Large Delegate Votes computed (same for District Delegate Votes).

Unpledged Delegates

About 1 in 5 of the delegate votes at the convention will come from "unpledged" or "Superdelegates". These delegates serve because of the office they hold or office(s) they have held. The presidential preference of these delegates is not a factor in their selection as delegates. Unpledged delegates are:

• The approximately 450 elected members of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
• Democratic Governors of the 50 states along with the following officeholders (assuming, of course, that they are Democrats):
  • the territorial Governor of American Samoa
  • the Mayor of the District of Columbia
  • the territorial Governor of Guam
  • the Governor of Puerto Rico
  • the territorial Governor of the Virgin Islands
• Democratic Senators and House members from the 50 states plus the following Non-voting members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives (again, assuming that they are Democrats):
  • the House Delegate from American Samoa
  • the House Delegate from the District of Columbia
  • the two "Shadow" Senators from the District of Columbia
  • the House Delegate from Guam
  • the Resident Commissioner (House Delegate) from Puerto Rico
  • the House Delegate from the Virgin Islands
• Distinguished Party Leaders (current and former U.S. Presidents and Vice-Presidents who were elected as Democrats, former Democratic Leaders of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House [including former Democratic Speakers of the House and former Democratic Leaders in both houses of Congress], and former chairmen of the Democratic National Committee.
• Unpledged "add-on"s (chosen based on the vote of the members of the Democratic National Committee).

The number of "Unpledged" delegates to the Democratic National Convention is subject to change due to deaths, resignations from office (for those PLEOs who hold an elective office) or accession- by a Democrat- to an elective office through an intervening election or special election. In addition, any Unpledged PLEO who shall subsequently become a Pledged PLEO may further alter the number of Unpledged National Convention delegates within a given delegation.

Awarding Delegates to candidates

During the primaries, caucuses, and conventions delegates are "won" by candidates as follows:

• District Delegates are proportionally allocated according to the vote in each Congressional (or other) District.
• At-Large Delegates are proportionally allocated according to the statewide vote. (Fine point: If a presidential candidate is no longer a candidate at the time of selection of the at-large delegates, that candidate receives NO at-large delegates [Rule 10.C.]. In most jurisdictions, the delegates are selected [according to the results of the primary or caucus] some time after the primary.)
• Pledged PLEO Delegates are proportionally allocated according to the statewide vote.
• Unpledged PLEO Delegates vote their conscience.

Territorial Delegates

There will actually be more delegates on the floor of the Democratic National Convention than there are delegate votes [which is why I use the term "delegate votes" in the first place]. Some states will have more delegate seats than actual delegate votes at that Convention [as a result of which, some delegates from some states will have to cast fractional votes during roll calls on the Convention floor]. There will be 4,362 delegate votes at the 45th Democratic National Convention, there will be 4,382 actual delegates on the floor of the Convention (20 more delegates than votes)... here's why:

• AMERICAN SAMOA, with 9 delegate votes, will have 12 delegates.
  • 6 at-large pledged delegates each cast ½ (or .5) vote for a total of 3 votes;
  • 2 unpledged delegates (Governor and Democratic Member of Congress) each cast 1 vote for a total of 2 votes;
  • 4 unpledged Democratic National Committee members each casts 1 vote for a total of 4 votes.
• GUAM, with 9 delegate votes, will have 13 delegates
  • 8 at-large pledged delegates each cast ½ (or .5) vote for a total of 4 votes;
  • 1 unpledged delegate (Democratic Member of Congress) casts 1 vote for a total of 1 votes;
  • 4 unpledged Democratic National Committee members each casts 1 vote for a total of 4 votes.
• VIRGIN ISLANDS, with 9 delegate votes, will have 12 delegates
  • 6 at-large pledged delegates each cast ½ (or .5) vote for a total of 3 votes;
  • 2 unpledged delegates (Governor and Democratic Member of Congress) each casts 1 vote for a total of 2 votes;
  • 4 unpledged Democratic National Committee members each casts 1 vote for a total of 4 votes.
• DEMOCRATS ABROAD, with 11 delegate votes, will have 22 delegates. The makeup of the DEMOCRATS ABROAD delegation will be:
  • 9 regional delegates [a .5 vote each]= 4.5 regional delegate votes;
  • 3 at-large delegates [a .5 vote each]= 1.5 at-large delegate votes;
  • 2 Pledged PLEO delegates [a .5 vote each]= 1 Pledged PLEO delegate vote;
  • 8 Unpledged PLEO delegates [a 0.5 vote each]= 4 Unpledged PLEO delegate votes.

DNC Members

"In a relative handful of cases, a Member of Congress or a Governor is also a member of the Democratic National Committee (in some of these cases, such as that of the Democrats' Congressional Leaders- House Majority Leader Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Reid- Members of Congress are DNC members ex-officio; in other cases, however, they represent various associated committees or organizations affiliated with the DNC: for example, U.S. Senators [other than Reid] sit on the DNC as representatives of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee- likewise, Congressmen [other than Pelosi] and Governors sit on the DNC as representatives of, respectively, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Governors' Association); the Democratic Party lists these Unpledged PLEOs who are DNC members as well as holders of elective office solely as DNC members (in other words, as far as the Party is concerned, these people are "Party Leaders" more than "Elected Officials"). However, it is the considered opinion of "The Green Papers" that the average user of this web site is going to think of these few Unpledged PLEOs who are in the unique position of being both PLs AND EOs more in terms of their elected office than their DNC membership: as a result, "The Green Papers" has "converted" DNC members who happen also to be Governors, Senators and Representatives to their political office from their DNC membership. Therefore, the breakdown in each state or other jurisdiction of Unpledged PLEOs as posted on "The Green Papers" may differ somewhat from that put out by the Democratic Party itself: where this is the case, it is so indicated on the appropriate DEMOCRAT page for the affected state or other jurisdiction."

Replacing Unpledged Delegates

Unpledged delegates shall not be entitled to a replacement, nor shall the state be entitled to a replacement, except under the following conditions:

1. Members of Congress and Democratic Governors shall not be entitled to name a replacement. In the event of changes or vacancies in the state's Congressional Delegation, following the official confirmation and prior to the commencement of the national convention, the DNC Secretary shall recognize only such changes as have been officially recognized by he Democratic Caucus of the U. S. House of Representatives or the Democratic Conference of the U. S. Senate. In the event of a change or vacancy in he state's office of Governor, the DNC shall recognize only such changes as have been officially recognized by he Democratic Governors' Association.
2. Members of the DNC and unpledged Add-on delegates shall not be entitled to a replacement, nor shall the state be entitled to a replacement, except in the case of death of such delegates. In the case where the state's DNC membership changes following the DNC Secretary's official confirmation, but prior to the commencement of the Democratic National Convention, acknowledgment by the Secretary of the new DNC member certification shall constitute verification of the corresponding change of unpledged delegates.
3. Distinguished Party Leader delegates allocated to the state pursuant to Rule 8.A.(5) shall not be entitled to name a replacement, nor shall the state be entitled to name a replacement.
4. In no case may an alternate cast a vote for an unpledged delegate.