Elizabeth Warren – The Superdelegate Who Doesn’t Believe In Superdelegates

Elizabeth Warren is a superdelegate who does not believe in superdelegates. She said that the party insiders should not be allowed to overrule the popular opinion of voters, which is the only purpose they potentially serve. Bernie Sanders said the same thing early in the race, but now his last hope of getting the Democratic nomination rests on an unlikely shift in the opinions of those party insiders.

When asked if she thought the DNC should scrutinize the role of superdelegates in the primary election, Warren said “Yes I do,” according to the Guardian.

“I’m a superdelegate, and I don’t believe in superdelegates.”

Superdelegates, also called unpledged delegates, are party insiders, many of them current Democratic elected officials, who can vote for whoever they want to in the nominating process. There are 719 unpledged delegates in the Democratic party, making up about 15 percent of the vote. Their privileged position in the process has come under scrutiny, in part because an overwhelming majority (about 76 percent) endorsed Clinton, which differs from the primary voters who have favored Clinton by only 55 percent.

That difference has fueled the idea that the DNC establishment is against Bernie Sanders, and helped delegitimize the process in the eyes of some progressive voters.

Elizabeth Warren, on the other hand, has been careful not to influence the vote in this year’s primary race one way or the other. She is the only female Senator not to endorse Hillary Clinton. She also doesn’t support Bernie Sanders. Warren is likely aware of her popularity with the progressive base of the Democratic party and knows her opinion can move voters.

Elizabeth Warren believes that other superdelegates shouldn’t “sway the election” either.

Still, for Bernie Sanders supporters, the unpledged delegates represent one last hope for the nomination.

As Sanders explained to CNN, “Hillary Clinton will not have the requisite number of pledged delegates to win the Democratic nomination at the end of the nominating process on June 14. Won’t happen. She will be dependent on superdelegates.”

That means the race won’t end until the convention, which could potentially be chaotic if a compromise isn’t reached between the two candidates beforehand.

Warren might not have picked sides, and she doesn’t seem to be a big fan of the current system, but she did say she’s happy with the primary fight.

‘[I’m] proud of the debate that Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have had. Proud that we are a party that doesn’t debate over who has the tiniest hands or who can build the longest, tallest, stupidest wall between us and Mexico.”

Elizabeth Warren is not a big supporter of Donald Trump, if that isn’t already clear from the quote above. She called the GOP presidential candidate, “scary, loud, outrageous, offensive, small, a failure and fraudster-in-chief.”

Warren also said of Trump University, “It was like a used-car dealership, except that’s not fair to used-car dealerships.”

Elizabeth Warren’s attacks against Trump have earned her a special place on the real estate mogul’s Twitter page and the nickname “Goofy Elizabeth Warren.”

I find it offensive that Goofy Elizabeth Warren, sometimes referred to as Pocahontas, pretended to be Native American to get in Harvard.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2016

Goofy Senator Elizabeth Warren @elizabethforma has done less in the U.S. Senate than practically any other senator. All talk, no action!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 25, 2016

Even without her endorsement as a superdelegate, Elizabeth Warren is proving to be an important voice in the Democratic primary race, and might play a role in reforming the process when the smoke has cleared.

[Photo by Astrid Riecken/Getty Images]