Dems forming commission to rethink superdelegates, primaries, caucuses

For Democrats concerned about the party's rules on primaries, superdelegates and caucuses, there may hope.

The party's national rules committee on Saturday approved a resolution calling for the creation of a "Democratic Change Commission" to examine when primaries and caucuses are held, whether there should be fewer superdelegates and how to make the caucus process clearer and more orderly.

The 35-member commission is to make its report to the party by 2010.

Rules committee members who spoke in favor of the resolution Saturday said that record turnout for caucuses this year highlighted some of the problems with the process, some saying they saw "chaos." Some in the party want to do away with caucuses in favor of primaries, saying the caucus process is undemocratic.

The commission's formation also follows a contentious series of events surrounding the Florida and Michigan primaries, which were moved up ahead of the New Hampshire primary and Iowa caucus against the Democratic Party's rules. The national party first stripped Florida and Michigan their delegate votes, then later gave back each state half of their votes in a compromise.

Some at Saturday's rules committee meeting also complained of the role of unpledged delegates, sometimes called superdelgates. The number of superdelegates has increased dramatically in the last two decades, and candidates this year spent too much time trying to woo unpledged delegates, critics said.

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