The woman who might be Virginia’s most important superdelegate will have a big say in the Democrats’ nomination fight before she commits to either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton.
Among Virginia’s 16 Democratic superdelegates, Alexis Herman is one of six who remain uncommitted to either Obama or Clinton. That might seem odd, cosidering that Herman served as Secretary of Labor in President Bill Clinton’s second term from 1997 to 2001.
But Herman has a good reason to stay neutral, for now.
She is a co-chairman of the Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee. That’s the group that on May 31 will take up a critical question—what to do about Michigan and Florida.
Months ago, the DNC took away each state’s delegates to the Democratic National Convention because they jumped the gun and held early primaries without permission. Clinton won primaries in both states, although she and Obama did not campaign in either and his name wasn’t even on Michigan’s ballot.
If the committee votes to restore even half of Florida’s delegate votes—a proposal the panel will hear May 31, according to the Associated Press—Clinton would gain important ground on Obama.
So, Herman is in a delicate situation. Don’t expect her to endorse either candidate anytime soon.
RSS 2.0