Three of Wisconsin’s sixteen super delegates – Gwen Moore, Tammy Baldwin and Russ Feingold.

Super Delegates Playing Important Role in Presidential Race

Hillary Clinton scored two big primary wins March 4. Now the race for the Democratic nomination is too close to call.

And “super delegates” are more important than ever.

The Democratic race is down to Clinton and Barack Obama. They have competed in dozens of primaries and caucuses this year. The winners of those races get delegates.

Delegates represent voters at the national political convention. Most delegates must vote the same way voters in their states did.

Others are like sports free agents. These are called super delegates. They can vote how they want.

Neither has enough delegates to win
These super delegates are vital now. That is because neither candidate has enough pledges from regular delegates to win the nomination.

“They might be the margin of victory, if the two candidates go down to the wire,” said Mordecai Lee, a professor of governmental affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. “A hundred super delegates might be the deciding factor.”

For weeks, Obama looked like he was headed for the nomination. But his losses in Ohio and Texas assured that he and Clinton need super delegate support to win.

More than 2,000 delegates are needed to win the nomination. That includes 796 super delegates. Wisconsin has 16 super delegates.

Most super delegates are elected officials and other party leaders. In Wisconsin, they include the governor and both U.S. senators.

Nine of Wisconsin’s 16 super delegates say they will support Obama. Two say they will back Clinton. Five are undecided.

Clinton has stronger super delegate support nationally. She has 249 commitments. Obama has 212. That leaves 335 uncommitted.

Obama appears to have momentum
Obama appears to have momentum. Since Clinton won Texas and Ohio, Obama has won backing from nine super delegates. Clinton has won just one.

Obama has won more than 50 commitments since early January
“That is a remarkable momentum,’” said Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri. She supports Obama. “I don’t think there is anything that will slow that down.”

A Clinton supporter disagreed.
“We think the momentum has been stopped, not cold, but very much stopped,” Clinton adviser Harold Ickes said.
Clinton supporters expect many super delegates will end up backing her.

Super delegates can change their minds at any point. Some may wait to commit until after all the primaries are done. Others may change their vote and back the favorite.

But how should super delegates vote? That is up for debate.

“I give the greatest deference to what (my) state did,” said U.S. Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconsin.
Obama won the Wisconsin primary. Feingold has not officially backed Obama, however.

Fellow Wisconsin Senator Herb Kohl said the choice is personal. He also would not reveal who he supports.

The process is controversial
“Super delegates were (established) for a reason. They were picked to exercise their experience and make a choice in the event of what is apparently happening now,” he said.

Another big question is if either candidate will get enough super delegate support to win the nomination. The last big state primary will determine a lot. It is April 22 in Pennsylvania. It will award 158 regular delegates.

“I understand that this process is controversial,” Feingold said of the power that super delegates have. “I think people are going to revisit it after this experience. These are, however, the rules of the game for this election.”

Sources: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The Associated Press, Bloomberg