Donald Trump and Joe Biden are set to make history yet again by squaring off in the earliest general election season debate in history on June 27. This matchup will force the opponents to face each other before they have even clinched their party’s official nominations at their respective conventions. The reason is obvious: Democrats will have plenty of time to replace Biden as the nominee when he inevitably stumbles through the first debate.
People like pollster Nate Silver are starting to call for Biden to step aside, despite many commentators still saying that’s an impossibility. However, both Democratic National Committee (DNC) rules and state laws have a plain and simple path to oust Biden.
State and territory delegates select the presidential nominee for each party, with a certain number of delegates allotted per state. Under DNC rules, there are two types: (1) pledged and (2) unpledged, or “automatic,” delegates. Contrary to what their titles suggest, the classifications matter little. Unpledged delegates may vote for whomever at the convention, but pledged delegates are free to do the same under DNC’s Call for the 2024 Convention, Article IX.F.3.d, despite the outcome of state primary elections. (“All delegates to the National Convention pledged to a presidential candidate shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them.”). Contrary to oft-repeated dogma, no DNC rule mandates that delegates are bound to vote for a particular candidate.
Before the Convention
The Democrat Party will formalize their presidential nominee at their
