12:59A citizen casts their vote at a polling site, February 3, 2024, in West Columbia, South Carolina during the South Carolina Democratic Primary. Allison Joyce/AFP via Getty Images
Friday represents a significant procedural cutoff for Democrats as they determine which states will participate in the initial presidential nominating contests of 2028. This comes amidst broader discussions within the party about diversity, voter representation, and which states will showcase candidates deemed viable for the long term.
The Democratic National Committee has established a Friday afternoon deadline for state parties to submit applications for their 2028 presidential nominating contests to take place before Super Tuesday, the first Tuesday in March during a presidential election year when the majority of primaries occur.
Voters submit their ballots in the New Hampshire presidential primary election at The Barn at Bull Meadow, January 23, 2024 in Concord, New Hampshire.Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
The sequencing of the primaries and caucuses is crucial as the early contests assist in indicating which candidates possess momentum and resonate with voters, often narrowing the candidate pool ahead of Super Tuesday.
The discussion regarding the order also centers around diversity and representation of voters within the Democratic Party. Some party members have contended that states with larger Black and minority populations should be given precedence to mirror the nation’s diversity, whereas others argue that traditional “early states,” like New Hampshire, should be prioritized to generate turnout and enthusiasm, despite their possibly less diverse demographics.
Historically, Iowa has hosted the first-in-the-nation caucuses, and New Hampshire has been the first-in-the-nation primaries. However, in 2024, a rearranged DNC primary calendar displaced these states from the top two positions on the party’s official schedule, placing South Carolina first instead.
While Iowa Democrats reached an agreement with the DNC by transitioning their in-person caucus to a completely mail-in voting process, New Hampshire’s primaries were retained in January, leading to tensions between the state and the national party.
A volunteer gathers voter ballots at a caucus at Franklin Junior High, January 15, 2024 in Des Moines, Iowa.Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart, in a statement to ABC News, indicated that the party is applying to conduct its caucuses prior to Super Tuesday, asserting that Democrats need to maintain Iowa’s position near the front to compete effectively against Republicans.
"Regardless of the decision made by the Rules and Bylaws Committee, Republican presidential candidates will be present in Iowa," Hart stated. "It was an error for the DNC to exclude us from the calendar, allowing Republican attacks to go unanswered in Iowa while millions of dollars in advertising, organizing, and worldwide media flooded our state."
Several state party leaders have expressed that having their states early in the calendar will help candidates demonstrate their ability to endure throughout 2028.
The Democratic National Committee headquarters, November 16, 2023 in Washington.Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Raymond Buckley stated that the argument his party is presenting to the DNC is that New Hampshire serves as an ideal state for 2028 candidates to cultivate support and demonstrate their viability. He noted that its small size facilitates easy campaigning in a swing state, "which is precisely what is required in the November general election."
New Hampshire is also bound by state law to conduct the nation’s first presidential primaries, which significantly contributed to the discord in 2024 between the state party and the DNC. However, Buckley remarked that this is not a current concern.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com