2012 DNC delegates to be selected via May caucus

While many of you were/are in Lansing, I have been spending my day (a) interviewing for a job, (b) listening to our President, and (c) skimming through the Michigan Democratic Party's Draft Delegate Selection Plan for the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte.

From a press release:

The caucus will occur on May 5, 2012 with district-level delegates and alternates elected at congressional district conventions on June 2, 2012 and statewide delegates and alternates elected at a State Central Committee meeting on June 23, 2012.

Michigan has 177 delegates and 13 alternates to the National Convention. Those numbers will be increased by holding the caucus in May under an incentive system adopted by the DNC.

A draft delegate selection plan (DSP) was posted on the MDP website today, beginning a 30-day public comment period. The plan will be considered for adoption by the State Central Committee at its May 14, 2011 meeting in Mt. Pleasant.

Here's the draft Delegate Selection Plan. The plan will be put up for a vote at State Central next month in Mount Pleasant.

The allocation of delegates to various Presidential candidates will depend on the candidates' performance in the state as a whole as well as in each Congressional district (the districts being the current ones, i.e. those adopted after the 2000 Census). Delegates are distributed proportionally to those who get at least 15% of the caucus vote in a district or the state overall.

What does this mean? Obama will probably get most/all of the delegate votes unless either (a) he gets a credible primary challenger and that challenger is still in the race in May (after several primaies/caucuses have been held), or (b) enough disenchanted Democrats (which I doubt there really are that many among the MDP's membership, but that's for another time) care enough to show up at the caucuses to vote 'Uncommitted.' Remember from the 2008 primary that 'Uncommitted' is automatically listed just like a candidate, but whether Uncommitted can get 15% of the vote is up in the air.

Here's hoping I'll see you in Charlotte!