Question on delegates

[eCENTRIC]

I live in NC by the way.

Ok say I was to try to become a delegate for Mike Huckabee. I know this is practically slander on this board but hear me out. When people at the convention can change their votes and I vote Ron Paul, is that illegal? I'm not saying I plan on being selected as a delegate but is this type of thing wrong? Is it already being done? Is it in the best interest of the die-hard Paul fans to so this? I mean if you know your state is going to be won by so-and-so and it's a winner-take-all kind of deal, why not try this?

I have seen people on here talking about and I'm just looking for a little more information. Is this vote fraud?

[Bradley in DC]

It's good to ask questions.

Here are the national rules and state summaries:

Here are the actual rules (http://www.gop.com/images/2008_Call_FINAL.pdf):

Rules "binding" delegates are determined by the states (http://www.gop.com/images/Press_State_Summaries.pdf): some delegates are not bound at all, others for the first few votes (first, second or third), while other states bind their delegates until they are released.NORTH CAROLINA 2008

Numbers
69 Total Delegates
• 3 RNC, 39 CD and 27 AL
Important Dates
Primary: 5/06/2008
Precinct Conventions: 2/2008
County Conventions: 3/2008
District Conventions: 4/2008
State Convention: 6/05/08 – 6/08/08
Selection Method
Modified Primary (Republicans & unaffiliated
voters), Caucus, Convention

Delegates “Unofficially” Bound

o 66 “Unofficially” Bound

o 3 Unbound
Selection Details
AL & CD – Delegate allocation: Proportionally
bound based on statewide vote.

Delegate election:
AL – At State Convention.
CD – At CD Conventions.


This was posted by NC4RP who seems to have the best handle on your state's rules:

(IMPORTANT - At the Presidential Year Convention, the delegates and alternates to the National Convention...shall be elected only by votes from the Convention delegates on the floor of the Convention. Presidential Electors-at-large shall be nominated only by votes from the delegates on the floor of the Convention.)(NC Plan Article VII.A.2.d) - does this apply at the county and district conventions?

Artical 7.A.6. General Election Procedure
... the allocated Delegate slots and then the allocated Alternate slots allotted under this Plan of Organization to a Precinct or a County shall be filled first by the election of those duly qualified registered Republicans, eligible to vote, present at such Meeting or Convention and desiring to be elected to fill such slots.
All duly qualified Republicans registered to vote may be elected by qualified Republicans attending the meeting to fill slots that have not been filled by Republicans attending the meeting or conventions. A county may provide in its Plan of Organization that only persons actually present are eligible for election as Delegates or Officers.

(1) Precinct Convention (February/march can be on same day/location as the county convention)
THIS Convention is the HIDDEN KEY to Ron Paul’s success in North Carolina. To win this EVERY Ron Paul supporter needs to register Republican as well as be a Delegate by attending your Precinct/County Convention to elect the base delegates to go on to the County Convention, District Convention, State Convention, and National Convention.

You must be registered Republican by JANUARY 31st to either vote in the Precinct Convention or be a delegate.

From the NC Republican Site - “The Delegates and Alternates elected at the Precinct Meetings, unless successfully challenged, shall sit as Delegates and Alternates to the County Convention.”

(2) County Convention (March) The County Convention is where Republicans elect delegates from the delegates who were chosen at the Precinct Convention. check your local county.

Half the Delegates elected at the County level to go to the District Convention and half go to the State Convention.

(3) Congressional District Convention (March/April after County convention): all 13 NC congressional Districts elects 3 delegates and one elector.

(4) State Primary Election (May 6th) - Up until this time only Republicans can vote; however, Independents CAN vote in this election. So get the independents aware of this, and get them to vote May 6th for Ron Paul (they must be registered independent or republican 30 days prior, but we need delegates seated for them to vote for, and if you can get them to switch to republican before Jan 31st then they can be a delegate)

Proportional in nature (that is: the delegates must be pledged to the contenders for a Party's presidential nomination via mathematical formula based on the percentage of the vote each contender has received [usually subject to a minimum threshold which, on the Democratic side, is 15%])..


(note - this is state rules and Republican "Plan of Organization" rules. The following Counties have their own "Plan of Orginization" http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=63912)

heres some detail with a little more legaleze in the following thread - http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=27188

[eCENTRIC]

Thanks for the link. I'm not quite sure I understand it all though.

Take Washington for example. The delegates aren't legally bound (they are morally bound but hey, this is a revolution). They are distributed proportionally between candidates. If someone said they supported McCain and became one of his delegates but later "changed his mind" and voted for Ron Paul, this is legit? Why don't people do this? Do they?


I had no idea elections were done like this. If I supported any candidate but Paul I would think these rules are stupid and people exploiting it were crooks. It's like they built this type of thing in if the party ever started to go to shit.



P.S. What does "unofficially" bound mean? That is what it says about North Carolina. If I decided to take this approach, could the party just decide not count my choice?

[Bradley in DC]

Thanks for the link. I'm not quite sure I understand it all though.

Take Washington for example. The delegates aren't legally bound (they are morally bound but hey, this is a revolution). They are distributed proportionally between candidates. If someone said they supported McCain and became one of his delegates but later "changed his mind" and voted for Ron Paul, this is legit? Why don't people do this? Do they?


I had no idea elections were done like this. If I supported any candidate but Paul I would think these rules are stupid and people exploiting it were crooks. It's like they built this type of thing in if the party ever started to go to shit.



P.S. What does "unofficially" bound mean? That is what it says about North Carolina. If I decided to take this approach, could the party just decide not count my choice?

I am so much not the expert on NC rules, sorry. Look around the NC subforum or check with NC4RP who seems to have the best handle on the rules there.