Bernie Sanders campaign says New York should lose its delegates after cancellation of presidential primary
The suspended presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Monday slammed New York's Board of Elections after it scrapped the state's 2020 presidential primary, saying the state should lose its delegates if the decision stands.
Sanders suspended his 2020 campaign for president earlier this month and endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden, but he said he would continue to gather delegates heading toward the Democratic convention, "where we will be able to exert significant influence over the party platform and other functions." On Monday, however, Democrats on the New York state Board of Elections canceled the state's presidential primary entirely.
Shortly after, Sanders campaign senior adviser Jeff Weaver blasted the decision an "outrage" and a "blow to American democracy" while calling for the Democratic National Committee to overturn it.
"What the Board of Elections is ignoring is that the primary process not only leads to a nominee but also the selection of delegates which helps determine the platform and rules of the Democratic Party," Weaver said in a statement.
Weaver went on to call for New York to lose its delegates should the primary remain canceled.
"If this is not remedied, New York should lose all its delegates to the 2020 Democratic National Convention and there should be a broader review by the Democratic Party of New York's checkered pattern of voter disenfranchisement," Weaver said.
Board of Elections co-chair Doug Kellner had argued on Monday that "what the Sanders campaign wanted is essentially a beauty contest" and that "given the situation with the public health emergency," that "seems to be unnecessary and, indeed, frivolous."
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