DNC backs virtual roll call vote for Biden as outside groups educate delegates about other scenarios
President Biden is expected to be formally nominated by the Democratic Party in an early virtual roll call vote between Aug. 1 and Aug. 7, the Democratic National Committee affirmed Friday.
At the same time, some outside groups have contacted delegates who are curious about what would happen if Mr. Biden decided to step down, such as an open convention. Mr. Biden and his campaign have repeatedly reiterated there are no plans to leave the race.
The DNC's convention rules committee met virtually on Friday and reaffirmed that the vote would not take place before Aug. 1 or after Aug. 7. The committee said a final date would be set by DNC leadership after a second committee meeting next week, at some point before July 26, and the rules of the virtual roll call will be adopted.
Convention committee leaders and DNC staffers offered more details about the virtual roll call that was announced in May, but has been recently panned by some Democrats as a way to rush Mr. Biden's nomination amid heavy criticism about whether he should remain the party's nominee.
DNC Chair Jamie Harrison reiterated his support for the Biden-Harris ticket during Friday's meeting, telling the members "thanks to every single one of you, we will re-nominate President Biden and Vice President [Kamala] Harris."
The DNC argued Friday an early virtual roll call is necessary to avoid litigation in Ohio, which requires major parties to have a presidential nominee by 90 days from the presidential election in order to appear on the ballot. This year, that date falls on Aug. 7.
Ohio passed legislation to move the date to Sept. 1, but Democrats say they still fear Republicans will keep Mr. Biden off the ballot in the state since that legislation is not yet in effect. The campaign says the early virtual roll call vote will enable Democrats to meet similar deadlines for other states.
"My goal as counsel is to ensure we address and avoid all unnecessary legal risk on the way. And that's why we need a virtual nominating process. It's why the wisest, most prudent course is to have that process conclude in time to allow us to file a certified nomination in Ohio by August 7," said Dana Remus, a former White House counsel advising the DNC on the process.
Asked by a delegate how another candidate could potentially challenge Mr. Biden in a virtual vote, committee co-chair Leah Daughtry said "any challenger would have to have the verified support of hundreds of delegates."
"Such a challenge has never happened over the past half-century of competitive primaries. But those rules remain in place today, just as they were yesterday, and just as they have been in countless presidential election cycles," Daughtry added.
DNC staffers on Friday said the virtual ballot is expected to be similar to the one used by delegates in 2020, during the pandemic. They added that members will be given a 24-hour-notice before the virtual ballot window opens.
A Democratic presidential candidate needs the majority of the pledged delegates, over 1,900, on the first round of ballots in order to lock up the nomination. Mr. Biden has close to 3,900 pledged delegates currently.
DNC Party Affairs and Delegate Selection director Veronica Martinez added the virtual ballot will show Mr. Biden "as the presumptive and only qualified nominee," but there would be an option for delegates to mark their own preference for president. She added this is the same as the ballot for the virtual roll call in 2020.
Some organizations have been contacting delegates to educate them on how an open convention would be conducted, and what would happen to the roll call vote if Mr. Biden were to step down.
Two groups unaffiliated with the DNC that were formed in recent weeks — Delegates are Democracy and Welcome Party — held a webinar Friday with longtime DNC rules and bylaws committee member Elaine Karmack as a special guest, to field questions from delegates and other listeners. Chris Dempsey, founder of Delegates are Democracy, explained that the group's work is meant to inform about the nomination process, and it is not advocating for Mr. Biden to leave the race.
"You can understand the incentives of why it's not being discussed [by the DNC]. They don't want to put this out and undermine the president," he added. "We're trying to fill that gap, which is an understandable gap, but it leaves us all worse off if we don't address it."
Dempsey said over 50 DNC delegates participated and listened to the call Friday, many of them first-time convention attendees. He added that most of those he spoke with support Mr. Biden but were seeking more information "were the president to withdraw from the race."
"This is a group of people that when they first got put forward to be delegates, kind of thought they were going to a party, a celebration," Dempsey said. "And now all of a sudden, they have the weight of democracy on their shoulders potentially."
Some DNC pledged delegates have been receiving calls from the Biden campaign, according to multiple delegates and DNC members, with some asking if they're still planning to support Mr. Biden, and others asking if they have any questions about the convention.
A Democratic National Convention spokesperson said communication with delegates "is a routine part of convention operations" and that the convention committee has been engaging with state parties and delegations since 2023. They added that since April, the convention's political team has done more than 150 one-on-one calls with state delegate leadership.
One DNC delegate from Nevada said they, and other colleagues, have also gotten a call from longshot Democratic candidate Marianne Williamson's "Open the Convention" group asking if they need assistance in filing a notice to the DNC that they no longer will vote for Mr. Biden and are requesting an open convention. This delegate said all the delegates they know who received such a call have declined the offer.
"We're happy to work with you to make sure your voice gets heard at the next convention," an automated voicemail message for the Open the Convention hotline says.
CBS News has reached out to Open the Convention for comment.
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Aaron Navarro is a CBS News digital reporter covering the 2024 elections. He was previously an associate producer for the CBS News political unit in the 2021 and 2022 election cycles.
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