Democrats vow at Lee press conference to have a place at convention

By JOHN OSBORNE, NaplesNews.com

Saturday, February 23, 2008

At designated polling locations throughout the state on March 1, Democrats in Florida's 25 congressional districts will have the chance to elect delegates to their party's national convention in August in Denver.

Question is: Will those delegates ever make it to the convention?

When the Democratic National Committee (DNC) stripped Florida of its 210 delegates for moving up the date of its presidential preference primary to Jan. 29, many Sunshine State Democrats were left with the impression they had no say in selecting a candidate for a presidential run in November.

Not true, said Tom McKennell, chairman of Democratic Congressional District 14, which has a large presence in Lee County, most notably in Fort Myers.

McKennell said it's almost certain Florida delegates will be seated at the national convention in Denver. Michigan, also stripped of its delegates for moving up the date of its own primary, likely will be there, too, he added.

"Whoever's nominated - either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama - automatically becomes the titular head of the party," McKennell said at a press conference at local Democratic Party headquarters in Fort Myers on Saturday. "What happens to the Florida delegates if the DNC does not allow them to be seated?

"If the DNC does not reverse its decision, the Florida Democratic Party will appeal to the eventual Democratic nominee to be seated at the convention. On the strong likelihood that the appeal will be successful, the (Florida Democratic Party) is conducting the election of convention delegates in a timely fashion."

Delegation candidates were required to file for consideration by noon Jan. 29, when the presidential preference primary polls were still open and the winner was still unknown.

McKennell said the idea that Florida - the country's fifth-most populous state - wouldn't be seated at the national convention is a "non-starter."

"Not going to happen," he said.

Clinton - the eventual winner in Florida - was often seen on television with a zero next to her name following her victory, indicating that she received no delegates from the state toward becoming the 2008 Democratic nominee for president.

That left Florida voters with the false impression that their votes didn't count, McKennell said.

Lee County Democratic Executive Committee Chairman Ray Troy echoed those thoughts.

"We're going to be seated at the convention - we just have to go through certain procedures first. After that, we'll be there," he said.

Of the four delegates available in McKennell's district, two went to Clinton, and one each went to Obama and John Edwards, who later dropped out of the race.

Clinton, who won in both Florida and Michigan, now trails Obama in the delegate count following a string of decisive wins by the Illinois senator.

She has lobbied the DNC to count Florida and Michigan's combined 313 delegates, which would put her back in the lead. Obama has countered that doing so would be unfair since both candidates promised not to campaign in those states, which they didn't.

The DNC has said that it will not back down from its decision to strip Florida and Michigan of delegates.

Polling locations in Lee County for the March 1 vote can be determined by calling (239) LEE-VOTE (533-8683), or by visiting http://www.leeelections.com.