Hillary Clinton Superdelegate Numbers: What Do They Really Mean for Bernie Sanders?
Hillary Clinton vs. Bernie Sanders is still anybody’s race, as Clinton’s alleged superdelegate lead is based in pure speculation. Huffington Post experts have argued against main stream reporters, who list superdelegates as committed when they are not. They point out that if Sanders earns 60 percent of the vote in the remaining 28 primaries most of those delegates will shift to the Sanders camp.
The Hillary Clinton superdelegate lead over Bernie Sanders is mostly a media fabrication say outsider pundits, while mainstream pundits cling to the superdelegate based lead as if it were a fact. With only two candidates in the race, 60 percent is not an unreasonable prediction. Should Bernie find a way to gain a 10 or more point lead, things will change and Hillary’s superdelegate based lead, would at least largely disappear.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCvklaEE-8s
Hillary Clinton’s superdelegate lead can shift to Bernie Sanders because superdelegates can shift their support, the same as any other sort of voter who has not voted yet. They will not cast their votes until the convention, and much could happen between now and then. Bernie has gained three more superdelegates since last week. This means little though, and no universal 10 point lead has been established.
Hillary Clinton has a pledged delegate lead over Bernie Sanders as well at this point in the primaries. The latest numbers from Real Clear Politics show Hillary currently has 748 pledged delegates, Bernie has 542. Clinton is still winning, in the wake of big wins in the South, but over half of the states have not even voted yet, so those numbers will change considerably with ample gains for both candidates. There are 4051 delegates to be pledged, and another 712 superdelegates who have the right to decide for themselves at the primaries, so the race is close and far from over. Only 1,254 of the 4,051 potential pledged delegates have been assigned.
Surrounded by record crowds of supporters at a rally [Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images]
“I’m not a believer in the sway of superdelegates deciding who is going to be the nominee. I think we have a democratic process where people vote on both sides of the aisle … and that that should determine who the nominee is.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5efYJHNi6U
Is Pilosi taking sides in Hillary Clinton vs. Bernie Sanders? Probably not since she made the same argument in Hillary Clinton’s favor during the 2008 convention, when Hillary’s superdelegate lead shifted suddenly to Obama’s court. That is correct, Hillary had all the superdelegates in her race against President Obama in 2008, until very suddenly she didn’t. Everyone who pays attention to the issue over the years, including Clinton, knows how quickly that superdelegate tide can shift.
In Hillary Clinton vs. Bernie Sanders, Nancy Pilosi is stating a principle that supersedes individuals. It is based on the right of voters to choose their candidate, rather than hand the decision over to Democratic party leadership.
“I have a great deal of respect for the voice of the American people. Thirty-five states have not voted yet, and I think that it would be important to hear from them.”
Hillary Clinton vs. Bernie Sanders and her alleged superdelegates is really a contest of insiders vs. outsiders, and both parties tremble at a public movement away from established politics.
[Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images]
