The 2008 presidential field at-a-glance

[LeslieAGD]

What happens to pledged delegates when a candidate drops from the race (ie - Edwards had 26 and Thompson had 5)?
Do they disappear, get reallocated, something else...?

[scbelle]

Originally Posted by LeslieAGD

What happens to pledged delegates when a candidate drops from the race (ie - Edwards had 26 and Thompson had 5)?
Do they disappear, get reallocated, something else...?

I know that Edwards suspended his campaign, so technically, he can still EARN delegates, should he meet the threshold 15% of the vote. That might have been entirely possible in CA... I know early in the return, my friend in CA was lamenting the fact that Edwards was carrying 10% of the vote and wasn't even really in the race. What will most likely happen with his delegates is he will endorse a candidate and ask them to vote for the person he endorses. His delegates won't be bound to his request, though. A portion of his delegates will be reapportioned between Clinton and Obama based on the vote from the earlier states (IA, NH and SC). When a candidate drops out, their pledged delegates are usually released from obligation to vote for that candidate, so they are free to vote for another candidate.

[honeychile]

Does anyone else really get a little crazy over trying to figure out how each state & each party decides their delegate distribution? It seems so unfair to me that California, with such a high population is "winner takes all" (at least for the Democrats). According to Yahoo!, Clinton took 52% and Obama took 42% of the vote, yet Clinton took all the delegates.

Can anyone recommend a really good map or list for each state, and the delegate distribution?

[jon1856]

Originally Posted by honeychile

Does anyone else really get a little crazy over trying to figure out how each state & each party decides their delegate distribution? It seems so unfair to me that California, with such a high population is "winner takes all" (at least for the Democrats). According to Yahoo!, Clinton took 52% and Obama took 42% of the vote, yet Clinton took all the delegates.

Can anyone recommend a really good map or list for each state, and the delegate distribution?

Just about any of the news sites have maps; this is the link to MSNBC's:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21660914

What I find odd is that it seems that some states have their party primaries on different days?!?!?!?!?

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by jon1856

Just about any of the news sites have maps; this is the link to MSNBC's:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21660914

What I find odd is that it seems that some states have their party primaries on different days?!?!?!?!?

Yes, but they rarely say State - Primary or Caucus - #Dem Delegates #Rep Delegates Winner take all/Congressional District/whatever.

I've explained how it's done in PA, and people are amazed.

[scbelle]

Originally Posted by honeychile

Does anyone else really get a little crazy over trying to figure out how each state & each party decides their delegate distribution? It seems so unfair to me that California, with such a high population is "winner takes all" (at least for the Democrats). According to Yahoo!, Clinton took 52% and Obama took 42% of the vote, yet Clinton took all the delegates.

Can anyone recommend a really good map or list for each state, and the delegate distribution?

California is not a winner-take-all for Democrats. No state is. The DNC divides the delegates in each state based on congressional district and population. I'm not sure about the Republican side, if CA is a WTA state or not.

And I happen to like www.mydd.com for delegate counts. It keeps a list of the states and how many delegates each candidate has received. It also has a list of all the "superdelegates" that have endorsed and those who haven't yet.

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by scbelle

California is not a winner-take-all for Democrats. No state is. The DNC divides the delegates in each state based on congressional district and population. I'm not sure about the Republican side, if CA is a WTA state or not.

That's what I always thought. Yet, both CNN & FoxNews said last night that it was.

And I happen to like www.mydd.com for delegate counts. It keeps a list of the states and how many delegates each candidate has received. It also has a list of all the "superdelegates" that have endorsed and those who haven't yet.

Thanks - I'll have to take a look.

[KSig RC]

Originally Posted by honeychile

That's what I always thought. Yet, both CNN & FoxNews said last night that it was.

I watched a LOT of Fox last night, and I don't recall them saying anything like this - in fact, they continuously pointed out how anything less than a win by huge margins (such as 25%+) would make CA, effectively, a wash . . . which guys were you watching?

[jon1856]

Originally Posted by honeychile

Does anyone else really get a little crazy over trying to figure out how each state & each party decides their delegate distribution? It seems so unfair to me that California, with such a high population is "winner takes all" (at least for the Democrats). According to Yahoo!, Clinton took 52% and Obama took 42% of the vote, yet Clinton took all the delegates.

Can anyone recommend a really good map or list for each state, and the delegate distribution?

If you follow links on CNN's site, you find out a great deal:
http://www.cnn.com/POLITICS/