WASHINGTON, May 31 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Today, Democratic National
Committee Chairman Howard Dean and Rules and Bylaws Committee Co-Chairs Alexis
Herman and Jim Roosevelt issued the following joint statement:
“Today, after careful consideration and debate, the Democratic National
Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee reached an agreement on the two
challenges before the Committee on seating delegations from Florida and
Michigan. The Committee voted to seat the full Florida delegation with a
half-vote each. The RBC accepted the Michigan Leadership Plan as presented
today by the Michigan Democratic Party with the exception that each delegate
receives a half vote. In addition, the Committee agreed that delegates from
both states should be slated under Rules 5, 6, 7, and 12, outlining the
candidate’s right of approval. With this decision, the revised total of
delegate votes needed to secure the nomination is 2,118.
“This decision was not made easily or lightly but after listening to oral
arguments made by the complainants, State Parties, and both presidential
campaigns, we believe this to be the most fair and equitable solution allowed
within the rules. The Committee arrived at its decision with three basic
principles in mind: One, that we must be fair to the voters in both states.
Two, that we must be fair to both campaigns who abided by the rules in good
faith and three, that we must be fair to the 48 states that followed the
rules.
“We believe today’s decision is a step forward in unifying our Party as we
work together to put a Democrat back in the White House so we can bring the
Iraq War to a responsible end and get our economy back on track. We want to
thank all of today’s presenters, members of the public — both those here
today and the many others who have made their voices heard throughout the
process, and supporters of both campaigns.”
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080519/DNCLOGO )
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SOURCE Democratic National Committee