House Democrats circulate letter to delay Biden nomination until convention: report
Democratic Party leadership is seeking to confirm Biden as the party nominee before the DNC, as early as next week
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A group of Democratic lawmakers is allegedly pushing for their party to delay the planned nomination of President Biden due to concerns the process is being rushed.
Rep. Jared Huffman, a Democrat from California, has written a letter requesting a delay in the party's nomination until the party's convention in August, according to the New York Times.
The letter is reportedly being circulated to other Democratic lawmakers, expressing serious concerns about plans to hold a virtual roll call as early as July 21.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Biden gives remarks during a meeting on the U.S. Economy with CEOs and members of his Cabinet in the South Court Auditorium of the White House in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Huffman declined to comment on the letter for the New York Times, but sharply criticized the party's plans to confirm Biden before the Democratic National Convention.
"To try to squelch debate and jam this through is a power play of the highest order," Mr. Huffman told the outlet. "That kind of heavy-handed move is not going to go over well with a lot of people."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital has reached out to Huffman's office for comment.
DEMOCRATS' NOMINATION OF BIDEN IN VIRTUAL ROLL CALL COULD COME AS EARLY AS MID-JULY
Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) speaks during a news conference inside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Democrats will officially choose their nominee at the convention, though the Democratic National Committee is considering formally nominating President Biden as early as mid-July, two Democratic sources previously confirmed to Fox News.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A potential date for Biden’s nomination is July 21, which is when the Democratic National Convention’s credentials committee meets virtually.
As has been reported for weeks, Democratic Party officials decided that the formal roll call would not take place at their convention, which kicks off on August 19th in Chicago.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Biden gives a speech at a campaign office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
A total of 1,976 delegates are needed to clinch the Democratic nomination for president. Biden has won roughly 3,900 this year. Those delegates have "pledged" to support Biden's candidacy, according to DNC rules.
Although Biden has not indicated that he plans to withdraw from the race, if he were to do so, his delegates would no longer be pledged to him.
His withdrawal would lead to an open convention, resulting in Democrats being able to make suggestions for potential nominees and cast votes until one candidate receives a majority of delegate votes.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital's Kyle Morris and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.