The Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced Saturday that it has removed New York and Nebraska from consideration for early primaries in the 2024 presidential nomination process, multiple outlets reported, citing a letter sent by co-chairs of the DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee.
The DNC also said it has cut Democrats Abroad, the party’s official organization for American expatriates, from consideration, according to Politico and The Washington Post.
Sixteen states and Puerto Rico remain in the running for the earliest spots in a new primary order.
The letter said that New York’s application was cut because of concerns over “size, the cost of campaigning there, its profile as a ‘solid blue state,’ and concerns that it would be impossible to counterbalance the disproportionate number of urban voters it would introduce into the pre-window period,” according to Politico.
It added that Nebraska’s proposal to sidestep its GOP-led legislature and state-run nominating contest by holding a separate primary run by the party would “create confusion by rendering the state-run process meaningless despite Democrats being on the ballot,” per the outlet.
The DNC committee co-chairs said they had rejected Democrats Abroad because of logistical complications, according to the outlets.
The states remaining in consideration, in addition to the territory of Puerto Rico, include: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Washington.
The 17 applicants will present pitches explaining why their state or territory should hold an early primary to the Rules and Bylaws Committee, which will recommend states for a vote by the DNC as a whole.
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This comes after the DNC opened up the application process for early spots in a potentially reshaped nominating calendar in April.
State parties’ bids are being judged based on diversity, competitiveness and feasibility. The DNC is specifically examining states’ ability to boost the party in the general election and to run a transparent race while dealing with the cost and logistical requirements of hosting a contest early in the primary order.
The decision to potentially change the party’s primary order came following years of frustration particularly over early primary states Iowa and New Hampshire, which are both overwhelmingly white and rural. A very public technology failure at the 2020 Iowa caucuses also served as a tipping point in the choice to reexamine the order.