All but one Dem hopeful boycott Fla.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. — Nearly 3,000 Democrats rallied around their top politicians and party leaders in Florida on Saturday, but the biggest impression was made by who wasn’t there. The party’s presidential candidates skipped the convention because the state violated party rules by setting its primary date before Feb. 5. Well, not all of them. “Mike Gravel for president!” shouted state Senate Democratic Leader Steve Geller, announcing support for the only candidate who agreed to come.
The convention comes in the middle of a months-long feud over Florida’s Jan. 29 primary. The Democratic National Committee responded by voting to strip Florida of all its delegates. Candidates were pushed by party leaders in the DNC-approved early-voting states – Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada – to sign a pledge not to campaign in Florida unless the state complied with DNC rules.
The Associated Press
