By O. Kay Henderson (Radio Iowa)
Nearly 50 Iowans who’re Democratic National Convention delegates will soon be called upon to pick a new nominee after President Biden’s exit from the 2024 race.
Iowa Democratic Party Rita Hart said she’s sad Biden has stepped aside, “but I recognize that this action means Joe is telling us it’s up to us to finish the job.”
Hart, who spoke with Iowa reporters this afternoon, said it’s unclear when the party will pick a nominee. “I think this is kind of uncharted territory,” Hart said. “…We don’t know what the process will be.”
The national party’s rules committee will meet Friday and is expected to set the guidelines. Scott Brennan, a former Iowa Democratic Party chairman, is one of Iowa’s representatives on the Democratic National Committee. He told Radio Iowa it’s unlikely the party would pick someone other than Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I think it’s probably at least an 80% chance she will be our nominee,” Brennan said. “…Mechanically I don’t know how else it works, particularly this late in the process.”
There would be “a huge campaign finance issue that presents itself” if Harris isn’t the nominee, according to Brennan.
“A presidential campaign is like a big ship and so now we’re going to turn a giant ship from having President Biden be on the top of the ticket to likely Vice President Harris, although who knows?” Brennan said. “I’m surprised we are where we are right now.”
Connie Gronstal of Council Bluffs is one of the delegates who’ll be asked to make the decision. She and her husband Mike Gronstal, the former Iowa Senate Majority Leader, hosted an event for Biden in 2007 and she was planning to back Biden in 2024. During an interview this afternoon, Gronstal told Radio Iowa it’s now time to rally behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
“She has my full support,” Gronstal said. “Hopefully all this drama is over with now.”
The Iowa Democratic Party’s chairwoman told reporters she needs to talk with the Iowa Democrats who’ll be delegates at the national convention before making any public statement about having Harris as the party’s nominee. “President Biden’s endorsement really matters…She has the experience and he would not endorse her otherwise,” Hart said. “…Our delegates will respond, but it’s so early.”
Derek Muller is a national election law expert who left the University of Iowa a year ago to join the law school faculty at Notre Dame. Muller noted that because of a ballot deadline in Ohio, Democrats had already been planning for an electronic roll call of delegates to nominate Biden in early August and the most likely outcome now is a virtual nomination of Harris in the next couple of weeks. “She’ll have to announce a vice presidential nominee by then, I suppose, and then they’ll move forward in business as usual,” Muller said, “except trying to fundraiser and introduce your candidate to the nation in a much shorter time frame.”
Shortly after Biden announced he would no longer seek reelection, several Iowa Republicans in state and federal office said Biden is unfit to continue serving as president. The chairman of the Iowa GOP chairman said it was “dangerous for Biden to remain in office.” Senator Chuck Grassley said voters “won’t be fooled” by Democrats “changing horses in midstream,” but he did not call on Biden to resign.
