July 20 (UPI) — The Democratic Party plans to formally nominate Joe Biden for president in an early virtual roll call vote between Aug. 1 and Aug. 7, the Democratic National Committee said Friday, as calls for the 81-year-old leader to step down from the campaign mount.
The DNC’s convention rules committee met virtually Friday and decided the vote would not take place before Aug. 1 or after Aug. 7. The committee said a final date would be set by DNC leadership after a second committee meeting next week.
The 3,896 pledged delegates will be given a 24-hour notice before the virtual ballot window opens.
There also are 700 automatic “superdelegates,” which include members of the House and Senate, governors, state party chairs and DNC members. They are not permitted to vote on the first ballot unless it’s determined that one candidate has an absolute majority of pledged delegates, which Biden will obviously have.
Biden won 99% of the pledged delegates.
The four-day Democratic convention is scheduled to start Aug. 19 in Chicago.
Typically, parties nominate their candidates at their national conventions, during live roll-call votes. In 2020, the process was conducted virtually because of the pandemic.
Party leaders say the virtual roll call is necessary to avoid litigation in Ohio, which requires major parties to have a presidential nominee by 90 days from the presidential election to appear on the ballot. This year that date falls on Aug. 7.
“My goal as counsel is to ensure we address and avoid all unnecessary legal risk on the way. And that’s why we need a virtual nominating process,” Dana Remus, a former White House counsel advising the DNC on the process, said. “It’s why the wisest, most prudent course is to have that process conclude in time to allow us to file a certified nomination in Ohio by August 7.”
Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison on Friday described his excitement to “renominate President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris” and to promote the “Biden-Harris ticket.”
More than 35 members of Congress have called for Biden to step aside.
Late Friday, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat seeking reelection, called for Biden to not seek reelection.
Other Senators seeking a change are Peter Welch of Vermont, Jon Tester of Montana and Martin Henrich of New Mexico. All but Welch are seeking reelection.
Prominent members of the House urging him to leave the race are Jamie Raskin of Maryland, Adam Schiff is California, Jim Hines of Connecticut and Zoe Lofgren of California.
Rep. Mark Takano of California on Saturday posted on Facebook: “Joe, I love and respect you. But the stakes are too high to fail. It’s time to pass the torch to Kamala (Harris).”
Biden defiantly has ignored their advice during public appearances and interviews with the media.
The president is off the campaign trail because he tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.