New Hampshire Democrats will be sending a full delegation to the Democratic National Convention this summer, following a vote by the national party’s rules committee to approve a nominating event held by the state party. The event did not have formal results released, but New Hampshire will have 25 pledged delegates and nine automatic delegates, also known as superdelegates. This resolves a conflict between the state and national parties regarding the timing of the New Hampshire primary.
Democrats changed their nominating calendar for 2024 to prioritize more diverse states for early contests, with South Carolina replacing New Hampshire as the first presidential primary. However, New Hampshire law requires its primary to be held first, leading the state Democrats to participate in the state-run contest in January before any other primary. President Joe Biden did not campaign in New Hampshire since the election was not sanctioned by the DNC, even though he won as a write-in candidate.
In the noncompliant state-run primary in January, Biden’s Democratic challengers, Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips and author Marianne Williamson, participated in violation of DNC rules. As a result, they were ineligible for the party-run process held over the weekend and could not win pledged delegates from New Hampshire. With Biden’s nomination secure three months later, the national party’s decision on Tuesday allows them to maintain their position of not recognizing the noncompliant primary while still allowing delegates from New Hampshire to attend the convention.
The conflict between the New Hampshire Democrats and the national party arose from the change in the nominating calendar for 2024, which prioritized more diverse states for early contests. New Hampshire’s decision to participate in the state-run primary in January was in defiance of the new schedule, as state law mandates its primary to be held first. The refusal to comply led to uncertainty over the state’s delegation to the Democratic National Convention, which has now been resolved with the approval of the nominating event held by the state party.
The outcome of the event held by the New Hampshire Democrats remains undisclosed, but the state will have 25 pledged delegates and nine automatic delegates for the convention. Despite the lack of recognition from the DNC for the noncompliant primary, the delegates from the Granite State will be able to attend the convention. The decision by the national party’s rules committee on Tuesday ensures that the New Hampshire Democrats will have a full delegation at the Democratic National Convention this summer, ending the uncertainty caused by the conflict between the state and national parties over the timing of the primary.
