SIRI AGRELL
From Friday's Globe and Mail Published on Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008 8:00PM EDT Last updated on Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2009 8:28PM EDT
Senator Hillary Clinton will have her name included in a roll-call vote at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, a concession aimed at soothing her supporters and bringing peace to the party in the lead-up to the general election.
The planned vote was announced by presumptive nominee Barack Obama's campaign Thursday in a joint statement with Ms. Clinton, and reportedly came after weeks of negotiations between the two camps.
“I am convinced that honouring Senator Clinton's historic campaign in this way will help us celebrate this defining moment in our history and bring the party together in a strong, united fashion,” Mr. Obama said in the statement.
Ms. Clinton added that “with every voice heard and the party strongly united, we will elect Senator Obama president of the United States and put our nation on the path to peace and prosperity once again.”
After a long and contentious primary battle, placating Clinton supporters appears to have become the unofficial theme of this year's convention, which will kick off in Denver, Colo., on Aug. 25.
The New York senator and her husband, former president Bill Clinton, have both been given headline speaking roles at the convention, sparking some talking heads to accuse the couple of trying to hijack the event.
Ms. Clinton will speak on Tuesday night, after the keynote address by former Virginia governor Mark Warner, and Mr. Clinton will speak on Wednesday, as will the as-yet-unnamed vice-presidential candidate.
Although the Obama campaign said Thursday that the logistics of the vote were still being established, roll-call votes are traditionally held on the third day of the convention, and are conducted state by state.
The chairperson of each state tallies its delegates' votes, and then reads them out to the convention secretary.
Toby Condliffe, a superdelegate who lives in Toronto, said that state representatives take the opportunity of a roll-call vote “to make a big deal of themselves.”
He is glad, however, that Ms. Clinton will be included, saying it is a wise conciliatory gesture to her supporters and pointing out that such votes are held at most conventions anyway.
But Ms. Clinton may not post the sort of numbers she is expecting. Mr. Obama finished the primary season with a 364-delegate lead over Ms. Clinton: 2,254 delegates to her 1,890, according to the Associated Press.
Mr. Condliffe believes many of her supporters have switched allegiance to Mr. Obama since then and will vote for him in the roll call.
Robert Bell, another superdelegate living in Toronto who supported Ms. Clinton's run for president, now plans to vote for Mr. Obama.
As for those Democrats still upset that their candidate did not win the party's nomination, Mr. Condliffe hopes this will bring closure to the issue.
“Although I'm not sure anything will make some of them feel better,” he said.
Mr. Obama reportedly supported the idea of including Ms. Clinton, who is expected to turn her delegates to over to him after the numbers are tallied.
Such a roll-call vote is not unusual.
In 1988, Jesse Jackson's name was entered for nomination despite the fact that Michael Dukakis had already been declared the nominee.
In 1980, the Democratic Party renominated Jimmy Carter, but delegates loyal to Senator Edward Kennedy stuck with him through a roll-call vote, even though he had withdrawn his name from nomination.
Many Clinton supporters have been campaigning hard for Ms. Clinton to be formally acknowledged at the convention. A grassroots organization called the Denver Group has taken out advertisements in U.S. newspapers encouraging a roll-call vote, and several groups have planned demonstrations in Denver to pay tribute to her primary performance.
At a private event in California earlier this month, Ms. Clinton was asked by several supporters to consider putting her name forward at the convention, and agreed that it could be an opportunity for “catharsis.”
But she laughed when one supporter asked what would happen if she received more votes than Mr. Obama.
“That,” Ms. Clinton replied quickly, “is not going to happen.”
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