The postponement comes after the committee spent months interviewing, discussing and debating a new slate of states vying to enter the first window of the presidential nomination calendar, a highly influential perch held by Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina for over a decade.
Earlier this year, the DNC reopened the nomination process, hearing submissions from 17 states and territories, all with the goal of increasing the racial diversity and competitiveness of states that initiated the presidential nomination process.
For two states in particular, Michigan and Minnesota, the possibility of changing their primary date requires some cooperation with their state’s Republicans, and neither has secured a public commitment to cooperate. The two states have emerged as the leading contenders for the Midwest’s spot on the calendar, likely replacing Iowa, which has come under heavy criticism for its awkwardness from Democratic caucuses in 2020.
It’s not just the states themselves in the first window that could change, but the order in which they would vote. There’s a fierce battle between New Hampshire and Nevada for the top spot, while DNC members have also left open the possibility of adding a fifth state to the lineup.
A DNC member who sits on the rules committee raised the possibility that there are lingering concerns about any changes to the order of states, such as whether New Hampshire should lose its status as first in the nation, and how that could affect Sen Maggie Hassan, who is running in an uphill battle for re-election.
A party official involved in the process said a number of states had feasibility issues, such as confirming changes to their primary date, which could not be resolved within the next week and that leaders Democrats wanted to stay focused on midterm preparations.
politico Gt