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The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release

50-Plus Rules Committee Members, 110,000 Activists Demand DNC Drop Superdelegates

DNC under pressure as movement to end superdelegates reaches critical milestones

WASHINGTON

In just 48 hours after launch, more than 110,000 people have signed a petition in support of an amendment to be offered to the DNC Rules Committee on Saturday that would do away with superdelegates. At 11:59 last night, more than 50 Rules Committee members joined the effort by cosponsoring and filing an amendment to sweep away superdelegates -- thus crossing the 25% threshold of support within the committee that will be needed to issue a "minority report" and force a vote on the floor of the Democratic Convention next week.

They are all part of a growing effort led by 14 national groups and numerous prominent Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders supporters to demand the DNC ditch superdelegates for future elections. The official rules committee vote will occur this Saturday, July 23rd, at 1pm at the Philadelphia Convention Center -- following a delivery of the petitions.

"The campaign to end superdelegates is catching fire," said Aaron Regunberg, Rhode Island State Representative and a DNC Rules Committee member leading the fight. "Superdelegates disempower voters, they are less diverse than our overall delegates, and they are wildly unpopular. The time has come to end the archaic and undemocratic superdelegate system once and for all -- and that startsSaturday in Philadelphia."

The petitions come on the heels of a twitter campaign that has sent tens of thousands of tweets to committee members, a letter from 14 national Democratic-leaning organizations, and comes the day before a plane is set to fly over Philadelphia reading: "HEY DNC,ENDSUPERDELEGATES.COM"

The petitions come from members of Demand Progress, Daily Kos, Social Security Works, CREDO, Democracy for America, and Courage Campaign.

Groups involved in the push include: Courage Campaign, CREDO, Daily Kos, Demand Progress, Democracy for America, Center for Popular Democracy, MoveOn, National Nurses United, NDN, The Other 98%, Presente.org, Progressive Change Campaign Committee, Progressive Democrats of America, and Social Security Works.

See an open letter from all of the groups at EndSuperDelegates.com