Politico: No Preference looks to make its mark at the DNC
08/13/2024 07:25 AM EDT
KEEPING UP CALLS FOR A CEASEFIRE — Vice President Kamala Harris’ ascension to the top of the ticket united Bay State Democrats and put the intraparty discord over Israel’s war in Gaza on the backburner. But local advocates are making a push to keep calls for a ceasefire coming.
The Massachusetts Vote No Preference campaign began circulating a petition Monday, urging the state’s delegates to the Democratic National Convention to pledge to serve as “Ceasefire Delegates” next week in Chicago — a label that marks their support for party leadership to implement a handful of pro-ceasefire policies at the convention, like adding a provision into the official 2024 party platform that calls for a permanent ceasefire and embargo on weapons to Israel.
The so-called Ceasefire Delegates won’t be able to wield the power of their vote at the convention. In a twist, Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz already accepted their nominations for president and VP after the DNC held a “virtual roll call” last week in order to avoid potential legal challenges from a since change Ohio law.
But organizers still want to keep up the pressure. “Having our Democratic state delegates pledge to be ‘Ceasefire delegates’ won’t impact Harris’ nomination, but it could help to pressure the Democratic party leadership to make a material policy shift to end US funding for Israel’s atrocities and broker an immediate and permanent ceasefire,” the petition reads.
The conflict and its impact on the impending election was once the central focus of politicians and the reporters covering them. But in the chaotic weeks spanning from Joe Biden’s campaign-crushing debate performance to Harris’ ascension, the issue has lost the limelight to the presidential election.
“I think it’s really important just that we remind ourselves that regardless of rhetoric, regardless of political signals, there are Palestinians today who don’t have food, who don’t have water, don’t have access to the most basic needs of life,” Somerville City Councilor Willie Burnley, Jr., one of the organizers of the campaign, told Playbook.
The No Preference campaign is holding a press conference this morning to lay out their plan. As of this morning, more than 1,400 people had signed on to the petition — including, according to Burnley, multiple delegates, though he declined to share how many or who specifically had added their names to the list.
It’s not the last chance advocates expect to have to gain more attention for their effort: “I think that as colleges come back, we’re going to see a natural shift back to this conversation, because until it’s over, organizers like myself are going to keep pushing,” Burnley said.