Florida Democrats to challenge national party

Florida Democratic leaders are to throw down the gauntlet to the Democratic National Committee today, pledging to move ahead with the state’s Jan. 29 presidential primary even if it means losing all delegates to the nominating convention.

The action comes with the support of more than 75% of the state’s executive committee members, who were polled twice over the last two days, and after talks between the state and national parties broke down Saturday.

State Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman is scheduled to make the formal announcement this afternoon in Pembroke Pines, party officials said.

“The important message we’re delivering is that we don’t want continued uncertainty. We will have an election on Jan. 29. The votes will count and our delegates will be seated at the national convention,” said state Senate Democratic Leader Steven Geller of Cooper City.

National Democratic officials voted last month to strip Florida of its 210 delegates to the Denver convention unless the primary was delayed by at least a week. The state party was given until Sept. 29 to come up with an alternative plan.

Among the alternatives considered were a mail-in election after the primary, a series of caucuses around the state, and a state party convention.

But leading Democrats from across the state voiced anger that under any of those scenarios the primary votes would become a mere “beauty contest” among the presidential contenders and not count -- a particular sore spot with South Florida Democrats still angry over the 2000 presidential election.

The Florida Legislature voted during its spring session to leapfrog the state’s presidential preference primary ahead of most states in an effort to get candidates to address key issues facing the Sunshine State, including Everglades restoration and insurance for catastrophes like hurricanes.

More than two dozen states, including the nation’s larger ones, have scheduled primaries for Feb. 5 -- and both national political parties threatened repercussions for any state planning an earlier vote.

The Republican National Committee, meanwhile, decided to take away half of Florida’s delegates -- although that is being challenged by Florida Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer.

The four early-voting states -- New Hampshire, Iowa, Nevada and South Carolina -- persuaded most presidential candidates to sign a pledge saying they would not campaign in Florida, although they are still allowed to raise cash in the state.

Florida’s early primary was pushed by the Legislature’s Republican leaders and signed into law by Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, but Democrats supported it because it was an amendment tacked onto legislation they supported that mandated a paper trail for Florida election ballots.

“The die was cast in the session,” said state Sen. Dave Aronberg.

“I could support moving the primary back a week, but the governor has already said he would veto it, so that’s not an option.”

The state’s Democratic leaders say they think that Florida delegates will be seated at the national convention despite the ruling by the DNC.

“Whoever the nominee is will seat the delegates,” Aronberg said.

“But whether they do or don’t, Florida’s primary will matter, because it will be a reflection of the votes of millions of Democrats in our state.”

Indeed, whoever wins the Florida primary -- the first to be held by a major state -- is expected to get a major boost going into the round of primaries scheduled for Feb. 5.

There also has been talk of a lawsuit challenging the Democratic National Committee’s position on the grounds that Florida is monitored by the Justice Department for violations of minority voting rights.

The four early-voting states’ Democratic Executive Committees “are conspiring to prevent a minority voter in a voting-rights state from having the opportunity to hear from any presidential candidate unless they are willing to pay for that privilege,” Geller said.

“That’s an intentional violation of the Voting Rights Act.”