I have been reading the Rules of the Republican National Committee. (Only the insanity of the current political landscape could lead me to do such a thing.) If the sociopathic real estate grifter decides to make an explosive scorched-earth withdrawal from the race before the election (or indeed before the debates), as I think entirely possible, the following rule grants the RNC the power to select his replacement, with state members of the Committee exercising the votes of their delegates by proxy, as I understand it. (The option also exists to convene another national convention, but that seems exceedingly unlikely.) Dahlia Lithwick, Richard Kim, are smart people thinking this scenario through already?
RULE NO. 9
Filling Vacancies in Nominations
(a) The Republican National Committee is hereby authorized and empowered to fill any and all vacancies which may
occur by reason of death, declination, or otherwise of the Republican candidate for President of the United States or the
Republican candidate for Vice President of the United States, as nominated by the national convention, or the Republican
National Committee may reconvene the national convention for the purpose of filling any such vacancies.
occur by reason of death, declination, or otherwise of the Republican candidate for President of the United States or the
Republican candidate for Vice President of the United States, as nominated by the national convention, or the Republican
National Committee may reconvene the national convention for the purpose of filling any such vacancies.
(b) In voting under this rule, the Republican National Committee members representing any state shall be entitled to
cast the same number of votes as said state was entitled to cast at the national convention.
cast the same number of votes as said state was entitled to cast at the national convention.
(c) In the event that the members of the Republican National Committee from any state shall not be in agreement in the casting of votes hereunder, the votes of such state shall be divided equally, including fractional votes, among the members of the Republican National Committee present or voting by proxy.
(d) No candidate shall be chosen to fill any such vacancy except upon receiving a majority of the votes entitled to be
cast in the election.
cast in the election.
ReplyDeleteThis is all quite extraordinary. I have no idea whether RNC members prefer power to ideology. But if, in the event of a "declination" (not a word I've ever seen before, outside possibly of linguistics), they could presumably choose Kasich, the last Republican candidate standing with centrist appeal, or even Paul Ryan, who can at least mimic statesmanship. Be careful what you wish for.
What are the Dem rules if something happens to hillary?
ReplyDeleteNot a clue, Chris. Do a bit of Googling of the Democratic National Committee. I am sure they have rules for such a contingency.
ReplyDeleteFound this (looks similar in both cases):
ReplyDeleteFilling a Vacancy: From the Nomination to the Electoral College Vote
Since the time of Andrew Jackson's run for the presidency in 1828, individual political parties have had the job of filling any vacancy on their national ticket, either that of their presidential or vice-presidential candidate. If one of their candidates vacates the ticket after they are nominated, either because of death or withdrawal, the party selects a replacement.
Both the Republican and the Democratic parties have rules in their bylaws governing how to fill the vacancy. The Party Chair calls a meeting of the National Committee, and the Committee members at the meeting vote to fill the vacancy on the ticket. A candidate must receive a majority of the votes to win the party's nod.
The same process would happen if the vacancy were to occur after the general election but before the Electoral College voting. If a vacancy should occur on the winning ticket, it would then be the party's responsibility to fill it and provide a candidate for whom their electors could vote.