Campaign

Dems announce ‘unity commission’ members

by Ben Kamisar - 04/17/17 4:22 PM ET

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) has finalized its “unity commission” roster, a group made up largely of supporters of former Democratic presidential primary rivals Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) now tasked with healing the party’s divisions.

Democrats created the framework for the committee at the July national convention, choosing Democratic strategist Jennifer O’Malley Dillon as the chairwoman and Sanders confidant Larry Cohen as the vice chairman. The resolution called for Clinton, Sanders and new DNC Chairman Tom Perez to fill out the remaining members by April 26.

“At the 2016 convention, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and national delegates agreed that in order to capture the energy of Democrats from across the country it is critical that we enhance the nominating process that continues to embrace the big tent of our party,” Perez said in a statement.

{mosads}“This includes everyone, from lifelong Democrats to 18-year-olds who cast their first ballot in 2016. A Democratic Party that gives every Democrat a voice in the process will make enormous gains from the school board to the Senate this cycle and it will take back the White House in 2020. We already see this incredible energy in a number of highly competitive races across the country.”

Some of the names have already been made public, such as former Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver, Nebraska Democratic Party Chairwoman Jane Kleeb and progressive journalist and activist Nomiki Konst, all representing Sanders.

Sanders’s picks also include Arab American Institute President Jim Zogby, former Nevada state legislator Lucy Flores, former Ohio state Sen. Nina Turner and former Berkeley, Calif., Mayor Gus Newport, according to The Huffington Post.

While the entire roster has been released, it was not immediately be clear which members were chosen by Clinton or Perez.

The remaining members include a mix of mostly former Clinton staffers and longtime Democrats.

The former Clinton officials include former chief administrative officer Charlie Baker, former senior adviser Maya Harris, former delegate director David Huynh, former Nevada state director Jorge Neri, former Colorado state director Emmy Ruiz and Elaine Kamarck, a fellow at the Brookings Institution who worked in former President Bill Clinton’s White House.

Iowa Democratic activist Jan Bauer, Democratic strategist Jeff Berman, Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge, former Maryland Democratic Party Chairwoman Yvette Lewis and former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb round out the group.

The members will be tasked with resolving questions that arose during the bitter primary race. They include recommendations for limiting the role of superdelegates in the primary process, debating rules for caucuses and primaries and bigger-picture recommendations about party structure and competitiveness.

The commission will hold its first meeting in early May in Washington, D.C., with a report due to the committee before the new year.

Tags Bernie Sanders Bill Clinton Hillary Clinton Marcia Fudge