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DNC Asks Judge To Dismiss Suit Over Delegates' Votes

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By ELAINE SILVESTRINI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 25, 2007

Court Document | More Political News

TAMPA - The Democratic National Committee is asking a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by a local Democrat who claims the committee will violate citizens' rights if it refuses to seat Florida delegates at the party's national convention.

The DNC argues in papers filed this morning that it will not be violating the rights of voters in the state's Democratic primary if it follows its delegate-selection rules and refuses to seat half of the state's delegation to the convention in Denver in August.

The dispute arose because Florida's presidential primary date, Jan. 29, is earlier than allowed by both national parties, which say Feb. 5 should be the earliest for most states.

For that reason, the national party asked state Democrats not to choose their convention delegates according to the primary but to hold caucuses on Feb. 5 or later. State Democrats refused, saying the primary would be a meaningless "beauty contest" and Florida Democrats' votes wouldn't count.

National convention delegates carry out the will of the primary voters when they cast convention ballots for the primary winner.

Victor DiMaio a strategist for local political campaigns, sued the party last month, charging that the national party would violate the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees equal protection under the law, by not counting the Floridians' votes.

In response, the national Democratic Party filed a motion to dismiss the suit, arguing that the DNC isn't acting "under color of state law and therefore the DNC cannot have violated the 14th Amendment." And even if it was acting under state law, the national party has its own constitutionally protected right to determine how to select delegates to its national convention, the motion states. Individual voters don't have the right to "dictate the method of delegate selection or use the courts to do so," the motion states.

The Florida Democratic Party is free to "run its own private, alternative process for allocating and selection of delegates and, if that process complies with the DNC rules, the FDP will be able to send a full delegation to the convention," the motion states.

On Monday night, DNC chairman Howard Dean responded to Florida Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Alcee Hastings' letter warning him of a potential legal challenge if the national party does not lift its sanctions against Florida Democrats.

In a response similar to the DNC's court filing in the DiMaio case, Dean writes that rules are rules.

And he says the sanctions will stand unless Florida's Democratic Party changes its plans to hold the presidential primary on Jan. 29.

Reporter Billy House contributed to this report. Reporter Elaine Silvestrini can be reached at (813) 259-7839 or esilvestrini@tampatrib.com.

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