As we barrel headfirst to whoknowswhere, if that trip should include an open Democratic Convention I was curious of the how such a complex thing is managed to successful outcome. I searched about looking for white paper or DNC Convention policies on the matter that detail the steps, rules, what ifs, etc. to no avail. (if someone knows a resource please share). But I did come across an excellent podcast with Ezra Klein of the NYT interviewing Elaine Kamarck.
Elaine Kamarck literally wrote the book on how we choose presidential candidates. It’s called “Primary Politics: Everything You Need to Know About How America Nominates Its Presidential Candidates.” She’s a senior fellow in governance studies and the founding director of the Center for Effective Public Management at the Brookings Institution. But her background here isn’t just theory. It’s practice. She has worked on four presidential campaigns and 10 nominating conventions for both Democrats and Republicans. She’s also on the convention’s rules committee and has been a superdelegate at five Democratic conventions.
The bad news is the process is complex and fraught with all the human landmines that tag along when a whole bunch of good people ( 4000+) in hotel rooms and back corners try to get on the same page to avoid the end of the world.
The good news is when it’s over, there’s an excellent chance to be gifted powerful unity, and energy that can accomplish huge, meaningful, and amazing things.
Last I’ve read, President Biden remains committed to the race despite the pressure directed at him to do otherwise. If so, avoiding an open convention certainly prevents a lot of fuss, and who knows what risk the primary was intended to preclude.