|
|
"A comprehensive, collaborative elections resource."
|
Deja Vu - A plan to raise soft money to pay for a second Florida Democratic primary--this one by mail--seems close to approval, according to Sen. Bill Nelson
|
|---|
| Parent(s) |
Race
|
| Contributor | Homegrown Democrat |
| Last Edited | Homegrown Democrat Mar 07, 2008 06:41pm |
| Logged |
1
[Older]
|
| Category | News |
| Media | Magazine - Newsweek |
| News Date | Friday, March 7, 2008 09:40:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | A solution to the growing controversy over Florida's disputed Democratic primary may now be in the works. Florida Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson tells NEWSWEEK he has spoken to the Florida Democratic Party about launching a soft-money fund-raising campaign for the benefit of a new mail-in primary, which would supercede the controversial Jan. 29 vote.
Nelson, who spoke on the phone Friday afternoon as he was boarding a plane from Washington, D.C., to Jacksonville, Fla., for the weekend, was not forthcoming with specifics in terms of who will be approached for donations (as a senator, he is specifically forbidden from raising soft-money donations), or the timing of the new primary. The senator was, however, clearly frustrated over waiting for other people to fix the problem. "My job is clear," Nelson says. "It's to stand up for the right of Floridians to vote as intended."
The disputed Democratic primaries in both Florida and Michigan have taken on increased importance as the close contest between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama drags on. Both states held their votes in January against the wishes of the national Democratic Party, which decided to strip their delegates as punishment for breaking party rules and voting prior to Super Tuesday. Nonetheless, 1.75 million Florida Democrats went to the polls--delivering victory to Clinton. As Obama took the lead in the delegate count, Clinton supporters put on pressure for Florida's and Michigan's primaries to count, while Obama's campaign decried the prospect of changing the rules "in the middle of the game." A third option has always been to revote, but there's been a dispute over who would pay for the multi-million-dollar do-over. Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has said there's no room in the state budget for a revote, and Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean also pleads poverty, saying he needs to stow away party funds for the general election. |
| Share |
|
|
2¢
|
|
| Article | Read Full Article |
|
| Date |
Category |
Headline |
Article |
Contributor |
|
|
