The process is a bit convoluted: The Democratic Party holds its convention in Los Angeles March 7-9, and the delegates can vote at that point for a pre-primary endorsement. That’s a big deal in a city like San Francisco, and in the 17th AD, where the vast majority of the voters are Democrats and having your name on the official Party slate card is worth a lot of votes. It also helps with fundraising.
But you don’t have to go through the whole party convention process. There’s a pre-convention endorsement vote, and that’s happening in Burlingame this weekend.
He’s what’s crazy: There are maybe 95 people who can vote. They include all of the Democratic elected officials who live in AD 17, as well as Democratic County Central Committee members who live in the district, and members of the state Central Committee who live there, and representatives of chartered Democratic Party Clubs. The clubs send delegates based on the size of their membership rolls – the Harvey Milk Club, for example, has 11. The Young Democrats has about the same. Both of those clubs have endorsed Campos, so he’ll get all of those delegates.
But it takes 70 percent – yes, 70 percent – to win the early endorsement, which then becomes official in March (it goes on the consent calendar for the convention, which makes is almost automatic.
Chiu, of course, has some delegates, but fewer are pledged to him because Campos has the major clubs. And quite a few others are still officially neutral.
If the neutrals abstain or don’t show up for the vote, it will be way easier for Campos to get to 70 percent. If the neutrals vote, say, for “no endorsement,” the odds are really good that neither candidate will come close to the supermajority number.
So there’s pressure on everyone, calls are being made, and a lot of active Democrats are going to miss the tenant convention to see this first official round of what’s going to be a long, tough race.
