Democratic National Committee
July 17, 2018

DNC Unity Reform Commission Statement on Presidential Nominating Reforms


DNC Unity Reform Commission [URC] Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon and Vice Chair Larry Cohen released the following statement on proposed reforms to the Democratic Party’s presidential nominating process, which the party’s full membership will vote on in August:

“We are proud to fully support the Rules and Bylaws Committee’s proposals for substantially adopting the Unity Reform Commission’s recommendations. Following the 2016 Democratic National Convention, the URC was established by party members with a mandate to review our party’s presidential nominating process and make meaningful reforms to strengthen our party and expand its reach. After several meetings, we proposed our recommendations for making our party more accessible, transparent, and inclusive. Since delivering our recommendations to the DNC last December, DNC Chair Tom Perez and the members of the Rules and Bylaws Committee have worked diligently to develop the new processes through which we will select our presidential nominees in future election cycles.

“These new reforms will increase participation, empower our candidates to be more competitive across the country, bring new and unaffiliated voters into the party, broaden our base at the grassroots level, expand the use of primaries, and make caucuses more accessible to people like shift workers and overseas military personnel. Notably,​ in a reform that we fully support, the new rules will reduce the influence, whether real or perceived, of unpledged delegates.

“These proposed reforms carry support from this commission made up of individuals that represent the vibrant, diverse quilt that makes up the Democratic Party. As such, we are confident that we’re going to head into 2018 and 2020 a stronger, more unified, competitive, and energized party that is welcome to every voter who shares our values.”

Jully 16, 2018

TOMORROW: Unity Reform Commission Receives Briefing on Rules and Bylaws Committee Progress

WASHINGTON—At 2:00 PM EDT on Tuesday, July 17, the Democratic National Committee’s
Unity Reform Commission will hold a telephonic briefing for members.  Commission members will receive a comprehensive update on the work of the Rules and Bylaws Committee to review and incorporate URC recommendations into the documents that govern how the party operates.
The telephonic briefing will be open to the press and public.

Throughout 2018, the Rules and Bylaws Committee has worked diligently to implement the most significant reforms to the party’s presidential nominating process in decades. Using the report of the Unity Reform Commission as a guide, the RBC has advanced reforms that expand the use of primaries, make caucuses more accessible to people like shift workers and overseas military personnel, empower the grassroots of our party and make our operations more transparent. Last week, the committee unanimously adopted language that implements previously adopted reforms to eliminate the role that automatic delegates have previously played in the presidential primary process, leaving it to the will of the voters to decide the Democratic nominee and putting the party in the best possible position to win in 2020. This reform also goes further than the Unity Reform Commission’s recommendation.

Under this reform, which now heads to the full DNC, all automatic delegates (or “superdelegates”) would not vote on the first presidential nominating ballot at our convention unless a candidate has already earned enough pledged delegate votes from state primaries and caucuses to win the nomination.  Therefore, superdelegates would not be able to overturn the will of the voters.
The Rules and Bylaws Committee originally voted unanimously to adopt this reform last month. In March, the full DNC voted in principle to reduce the role that unpledged delegates play in the presidential nominating contest. The full DNC will vote on final passage of this reform next
month.

This conference call is open to the public.
Members of the public: RSVP and dial-in information can be obtained here for the members of the public.
Media: Press dial-in information will be provided upon RSVP here.
WHAT: DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee Conference Call WHO: Members of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee WHEN: Tuesday, July 17, starting at 2:00 PM EDT


July 10, 2018

TOMORROW: DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee Meeting

WASHINGTON—On July 11 and 12, the Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee will meet in Washington, D.C. to take final action regarding the call for the 2020 Convention and finalize both the Delegate Selection Rules and the Charter and Bylaws Amendments previously considered at the Providence meeting.

The meeting will be open to the press and public. Both days begin at 9:30 AM EDT.

At the Rules and Bylaws telephonic meeting last month, the committee took the step of voting in favor of eliminating the role that unpledged delegates (commonly known as “superdelegates”) have traditionally played in the presidential nominating process by preventing them from voting on the first presidential nominating ballot unless a candidate has already earned enough pledged delegate votes from state primaries and caucuses to win the nomination.

Throughout 2018, the Rules and Bylaws Committee has worked to implement the most significant reforms to the party’s presidential nominating process in decades. Last week’s vote followed through on a vote by the full DNC membership in March that called for reducing the influence of unpledged delegates in the presidential nominating process, expanding the use of primaries, taking steps to protect the right to vote, making our caucuses more accessible, increasing transparency in our party and increasing grassroots participation. These reforms will continue to make our party more competitive in every ZIP code in 2018 and beyond.

The Rules and Bylaws Committee received the recommendations of the Unity Reform Commission in December and completed its work by the June 30 deadline, which included the crafting of any rules, bylaws, or charter amendments necessary to implement these recommendations. Their recommendations will then go to the full DNC for consideration at the summer meeting.


Media: Press must RSVP here.


WHAT: DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee Meeting

WHO: Members of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee

WHERE: Embassy Suites Convention Center

900 10th St NW, Washington, DC 20001

WHEN: July 11–July 12, starting at 9:30 AM EDT