House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will not pledge support to front-runner without a delegate majority
Nancy Pelosi addressing reporters at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington Feb. 27, 2020. AP
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refuses to say whether the candidate with a plurality of votes should win the Democratic nomination, a day after saying she would support whoever becomes the nominee.
Wednesday, Pelosi (D-Calif.) said “yes,” when asked if she was comfortable with front-runner Senator Bernie Sanders representing the Democratic Party in the general election.
The Democratic establishment has expressed concerns about a self-described democratic socialist hurting the party’s chances of winning the presidency and down-ballot elections in both the House and Senate. Pelosi, forever fixated with the Democrats controlling Congress suggested that no such concern exist and pledged her support to whoever is chosen to represent the party.
“I think whoever our nominee is, we will enthusiastically embrace and we will win the White House, the Senate, and the House,” Pelosi said.
However, on Thursday, Pelosi declined to say whether she would support a candidate with a plurality of delegates, as under DNC rules a majority is needed to secure the nomination.
“The person who will be nominated will be the person who has a majority plus one. That may happen before they even get to the convention but we’ll see,” Pelosi said at a press conference Thursday.
Pelosi’s coy response may temporarily provide cover from Sanders supporters who fear that in a brokered convention, Democratic Party delegates may shift their alliances from Sanders to a more moderate candidate.
Today, the New York Times reported that superdelegates conveyed “overwhelming opposition” to voting for Sanders if he wins only a plurality of delegates going into July’s Democratic National Convention.
Senator Sanders must reach a delegate majority of at least 1991 delegates to win on the first ballot and avoid the uncertainty of a brokered convention. Currently, Sanders leads all candidates with 45 delegates going into Saturday’s South Carolina primary.
