Superdelegates reap campaign donations
Every vote counts, but one group counts a little more
5:30 p.m. Monday, March 3, 2008
Every vote counts, but there is a particular group whose votes count a little more.
They are the so-called superdelegates.
In the race for the nomination, most of the votes, or "delegates," are decided by primaries or caucuses, where you have a say in who your party chooses for the nomination, but superdelegates are a sort of "super-voter."
They have more say than a regular voter because they don't have to vote for the candidate their state's citizens support. They can support whoever they want, and they make up 20 percent of the total delegates nationwide.
That makes them even more crucial in a close-race for the nomination, like the one we're seeing right now between senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Related link
To find out who else the candidates for president are giving their money to and how much is going to whom log on to CapitalEye.org.
The candidates are using a tried and true method to gain support: Campaign cash.
Although we generally think of it in terms of money being donated to the candidates, in this case it's just the opposite.
Candidates are donating money to voters, at least to the superdelegates across the country.
We searched the databases found that the presidential hopefuls have doled out some money to Kansas politicians, but we were surprised at how much they're giving away out of their own campaign funds.
Kansas has nine superdelegates, including the governor.
The candidates are aggressively trying to secure the support of as many of those superdelegates as they can.
We checked OpenSecrets.org and found that Clinton and Obama combined have spent almost a million dollars trying to persuade superdelegates over the past three years.
The recipient list includes Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. She accepted $2,000 each from Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Congresswoman Nancy Boyda, who has not yet committed to a candidate, accepted $5,000 from Obama.
And if the race isn't sealed up in Tuesday's primaries, expect the list of campaign contributions to grow even longer and fatter in the coming months.
Kansas' superdelegates
Kansas superdelegates supporting Obama:
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius
National Democratic Committee Representative Lee Kinch
National Democratic Committee Representative Randy Roy
Kansas superdelegates supporting Clinton:
Kansas Democratic Party Vice Chair Teresa Krusor
Uncommitted superdelegates:
Congressman Dennis Moore
Congresswoman Nancy Boyda
Kansas Democratic Party Chairman Larry Gates
National Federation of Democratic Women Chairwoman Helen Knetzer
One final superdelegate to be chosen at the state convention
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