Joe Biden has a couple of primary challengers, Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn) and Marianne Williamson, who polls show are not an actual threat to his campaign, but Florida Democrats are essentially trying to cancel their state's Democratic presidential primary nevertheless.
"The Phillips campaign’s complaint is rooted in the process by which candidates can get on the ballot in Florida. Under state law, it is left up to the parties to decide who makes the primary ballot. The deadline for parties to submit a list of approved candidates to state election officials is Thursday," Politico reported. "But Florida Democrats acted before then, sending a notice on Nov. 1 to the state that had Biden as the only primary candidate. Phillips had entered the race a few days earlier, and self-help guru Marianne Williamson had been campaigning for months by then. Under state law, if a party only signs off on one candidate for the primary ballot, the contest is not held."
Florida’s primary is held March 19, which puts it in line behind Super Tuesday and several other large states such as California and Texas. It is expected to allocate 250 delegates.
In his statement, Phillips called the handling of the process by the Florida Democrats a “blatant act of electoral corruption” and demanded Biden “condemn and immediately address” it.
The Biden campaign did not provide a comment for this story.
Nikki Fried, the chair of the Florida Democratic Party, contended the party followed its “standard process” that was outlined on its website.
“We are dismayed by Dean Phillps’ conspiratorial and inappropriate comments comparing the state of Florida to the Iranian regime as part of his knee-jerk reaction to long-established procedures,” Fried said. “This is unbecoming of someone running for higher office.”
However, as Politico notes, "The delegate selection plan cited by Florida Democrats does not spell out an exact deadline for candidates to ask to be placed on the primary ballot."
Eden Giagnorio, a spokesperson for the Florida Democratic Party, even acknowledged, “There’s no requirement for presidential candidates to do anything to get on the ballot.” However, she mentioned that the party had no intention to append more names to the list of approved candidates by the deadline.
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For a party that has made a habit of claiming that "democracy is on the line" in the next election, it's unfathomable that Florida Democrats want to deny their voters the opportunity to choose — even if the outcome is ultimately the same.
The Phillips campaign is considering a lawsuit and intends to take its fight to the Democratic National Committee.
Phillips recently apologized to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) for not believing his past claims that the Democratic Party's nomination process was rigged.
"I have an apology to make to [Bernie Sanders]," he wrote on Twitter last month. "I had long dismissed his complaints about the rigged Democratic Party primary system. But you know what? He was right. And I apologize, Bernie."
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