Sunday, February 03, 2008
CNN’s superdelegate count is a joke
WE’VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com
CNN’s superdelegate count is here. They are currently at Clinton 184, Obama 95. They are 40 endorsements behind the AP, and 48 behind CBS. OK, fine, different standards.
But they are 24 endorsements behind the world-wide news gathering operation here at 2008 Democratic Convention Watch. By news gathering organization, I mean 2 part-time bloggers with day jobs. By world-wide I mean our Denver bureau (that would be Oreo) and our East Coast bureau (that would be Matt).
I guess I would suggest to our good friends at CNN that maybe you should do a little research at our Superdelegate Tracker, and maybe update your numbers?
And if anyone wants to suggest another media source to replace CNN, please do so. (Make sure they’re not just giving the AP numbers – many do).
Update on 2/5: CNN has finally updated their numbers; Clinton 193, Obama 106. Still less than we have here at DCW, but at least someone is awake over at CNN. And we’ll stick with CNN, as NBC/MSNBC doesn’t give superdelegate numbers, ABC is using the AP numbers, and FOX, well, as I said, we’ll stick with the CNN numbers.
Posted by Matt at 11:27 AM 
http://abcnews.go.com/politics/elections/delegates?ref=ipb
ABC doesn’t split out supers, as you note, and they also use the AP numbers, so they’re not a usable source for us.
I enjoy CNN’s layout but they are dropping the ball on several sections of their Election Center. The money hasn’t been updated since September, for one. I sent them a suggestion of updating it so perhaps we can suggest they stay on top of the delegate count as well. It also took them about a week to display Edwards as “out” after he announced he was dropping out.
NPR uses AP numbers; NBC doesn’t count superdelegates; it seems that the news corps are not bothering to invest in creating their own independent superdelegate counts and are relying on the hope that the pledged delegates will decide the race before we need to know the superdelegate tally. Personally, I find NBC to have the most respectable coverage this cycle, and apparently, unlike some other networks, they have decided to completely ignore superdelegates rather than publish a bogus number.
This superdelegate thing makes me uncomfortable, and I wish America had a more fairer and simpler method for voting, such as the Popular vote-so we the people actually chose our own nominee. Its time to change that delegate system, I think-Astara
Not surprised. CNN also thinks that Rockford is part of “downstate” Illinois, when it’s about as far north in the state as you can get. “Downstate communities such as Peoria, Rockford and Springfield are also targeted because of their sizable working-class, swing constituencies.”
CNN doesn’t even list Puerto Rico as one of the jurisdictions of the United States participating in the delegate selection process, even though it has more delegates than about 27 states—more than SC, OK or CT.
CNN is the biggest BS ever! It’s been 2 days since Super Tuesday, all the precincts are in, and they still can’t allocate the delegates properly?
Like…do they have to go to the moon and make the calculations?? It’s ridiculous. I think they’re also being unfair to Clinton. By not plugging in the candidates until Saturday, when the next elections are, they won’t show that Clinton is ahead by more than 100 delegates overall. Remember how Obama said if he came within 100 it would be successful?
Well, he did not. She’s ahead by more…and CNN is hiding that truth to the public so that it won’t hurt their beloved Obama until the next contests!
I used the CNN list of state delegates allotted with RCP list of pledged. As of this morning it list Clinton 866 and Obama 877. Not designated yet: AL 3, CO 27, GA 6, IL 8, NM 1, and TN 2. I added the superdelegates at the end bringing it to Clinton to 1077 and Obama 1004.
It’s VERY disturbing to me that the superdelegates are even allowed to be counted prior to the outcome of their states’ primary. Each superdelegate gets to cast his or her vote along with the rest of us, in their state primary, so that the actual votes of the public can be counted. I guess I’m just a hopeless idealist, but I thought that the superdelegates were there to enforce the views of their contituency at the convention, but here they are attempting to sway the outcome even before the votes are cast. This whole scheme of “super” politicians having the ability to outweight the popular vote is just serving to prove once again that the will of the majority really doesn’t matter much at all. It’s all just politics as usual. Democrats, shame on you!
How about Politico?
http://www.politico.com/superdelegates/