Biden says delegates can vote their conscience — and he’s right. But mass defections remain unlikely

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Thursday that his pledged delegates could vote their conscience — and he’s right, party rules say they can do just that. But historical precedent, as well as the delegate selection process, make it likely that the vast majority will stick with him anyway.

Biden said during his NATO press conference that delegates are “free to do whatever they want” at the Democratic National Convention, including nominate a different candidate. Shortly after, he mock-whispered into the microphone, “It’s not going to happen.”

On both counts, Biden’s assessment is likely accurate: DNC rules do technically leave room for “good conscience” to drive delegate decisions, yet they rarely abandon their pledged candidate. The vetting process for delegates also makes it unlikely that many would break from Biden unless he dropped out.

“I didn’t take that to be like, ’Oh, I’m letting the delegates decide someone else,” said Adam Peters, a 36-year-old Democratic delegate from Iowa who’s sticking with his pledge to support Biden. “I think he was just insinuating that if folks are so concerned, we’ll see what happens on the floor — but at the end of the day he’s the nominee.”

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