Democrats must act swiftly to get presidential candidate on Texas, New Mexico ballots
UPDATE: U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, says Democratic delegates from Texas — the country’s third-largest DNC delegation — have voted overwhelmingly to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for President of the United States.
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — With President Joe Biden dropping out of the 2024 presidential election, questions have been raised about how his Democratic replacement would get on the November ballot across the country. If the party acts swiftly, a new nominee won’t have an issue getting on the ballot in Texas.
Both major parties have until Aug. 26 to submit the names of their presidential candidates for the Texas ballot, which gives Democrats a little over a month to make the necessary changes to replace Biden.
According to the Texas election code, the Texas secretary of state can certify a political party’s replacement nominee for president or vice president if the original nominee withdraws, dies or is declared ineligible by the 74th day before the presidential election day, which is Aug. 23 this year, if the party’s state chair submits the replacement nominee no later than 5 p.m. of the 71st day before election day, which is Aug. 26.
The Democratic National Convention will take place Aug. 19-22 in Chicago, which is when the Democratic Party and its delegates could select their new nominee to appear on the Texas ballot. Texas is sending 273 delegates to the convention, including El Paso’s eight delegates.
Biden, along with several other high-profiled Democrats, have endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. However, the delegates are not bound to support a particular candidate, which is why a few of Texas’ delegates are calling for a partywide discussion instead of rallying behind Harris.
The Associated Press reported on Monday that more than 1,150 pledged delegates have told the AP or announced that they plan to support Harris at the convention, which is more than half of the pledged delegates she needs to secure the nomination for president.
New Mexico has a similar deadline as Texas, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
“New Mexico follows major party rules for the selection of presidential candidates and, as long as they meet the ballot deadline of August 27, 2024, whoever is nominated for president at the upcoming Democratic Convention will appear on New Mexico’s General Election ballot,” said Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver.
Biden announced his decision to withdraw from the race on Sunday after his physical and mental acuity were called into question following a prime-time debate in which he struggled to finish sentences, gave confused looks and fumbled through his answers. Biden’s exit is a stunning end to political career that spanned over five decades and culminated in caving to pressure from fellow Democrats to end his bid for re-election.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote in a letter posted to social media.
Former President Donald Trump officially accepted the Republican presidential nomination last week in Milwaukee at the Republican National Convention.
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