The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the
United States Democratic Party
The Democratic Party is one of the Two-party system, two Major party, major contemporary political parties in the United States. Founded in 1828, it was predominantly built by Martin Van Buren, who assembled a wide cadre of politicians in eve ...
. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well as works to establish a "party brand". It organizes the
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...
held every four years to nominate a candidate for
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
and to formulate the
party platform
A political party platform (US English), party program, or party manifesto (preferential term in British & often Commonwealth English) is a formal set of principle goals which are supported by a political party or individual candidate, in order ...
. While it provides support for party candidates, it does not have direct authority over elected officials.
When a Democrat is president, the White House controls the Committee. According to Boris Heersink, "political scientists have traditionally described the parties’ national committees as inconsequential but impartial service providers."
Its chair is elected by the committee. It conducts fundraising to support its activities.
The DNC was established at the
1848 Democratic National Convention
The 1848 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that met from Monday May 22 to Thursday May 25 in Baltimore, Maryland. It was held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for President and Vice president in ...
.
[Party History](_blank)
Retrieved February 17, 2007. The DNC's main counterpart is the
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
.
Role and organization
The DNC is responsible for articulating and promoting the Democratic platform and coordinating party organizational activity. When the president is a Democrat, the party generally works closely with the president. In presidential elections, it supervises the national convention and, both independently and in coordination with the presidential candidate, raises funds, commissions polls, and coordinates campaign strategy. Following the selection of a party nominee, the public funding laws permit the national party to coordinate certain expenditures with the nominee, but additional funds are spent on general, party-building activities. There are state committees in every state, as well as local committees in most cities, wards, and towns (and, in most states, counties).
The chairperson of the DNC is elected by vote of members of the Democratic National Committee.
[DNC 2018 Charter]
/ref> The DNC is composed of the chairs and vice-chairs of each state Democratic Party's central committee, two hundred members apportioned among the states based on population and generally elected either on the ballot by primary voters or by the state Democratic Party committee, a number of elected officials serving in an ex officio
An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...
capacity, and a variety of representatives of major Democratic Party constituencies.
The DNC establishes rules for the caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
es and primaries
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the c ...
which choose delegates to the Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...
, but the caucuses and primaries themselves are most often run not by the DNC but instead by each individual state. Primary elections, in particular, are invariably conducted by state governments according to their own laws. Political parties may choose to participate or not participate in a state's primary election, but no political party executives have any jurisdiction over the dates of primary elections, or how they are conducted.
All DNC members are superdelegate
In American politics, a superdelegate is an unpledged delegate to the Democratic National Convention who is seated automatically and chooses for themselves for whom they vote. These Democratic Party superdelegates (who make up slightly under 15 ...
s to the Democratic National Convention, and their role can affect the outcome over a close primary race. These delegates, officially described as "unpledged party leader and elected official delegates," fall into three categories based on other positions they hold:
* elected members of the Democratic National Committee,
* sitting Democratic governors and members of Congress, and
* distinguished party leaders, consisting of current and former presidents, vice presidents, congressional leaders, and DNC chairs, are all superdelegates for life.
Leadership
* Chair: Jaime Harrison
Jaime R. Harrison (; born February 5, 1976) is an American attorney and politician who is the chairman of the Democratic National Committee. He previously served as the chair of the South Carolina Democratic Party from 2013 to 2017. Harrison un ...
, former Chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party
The South Carolina Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina.
History
The Democratic Party thrived during the Second Party System between 1832 ...
*Executive Director: Sam Cornale, former Chief of Staff of the Democratic National Committee
*Deputy Executive Director: Roger Lau
Roger Lau (born in 1977) is an American political consultant who served as the campaign manager for Elizabeth Warren's 2020 presidential campaign. Lau is the deputy executive director of the Democratic National Committee.
Early life
Lau was ...
, former Campaign Manager for Elizabeth Warren for President
*Political Director: Alana Mounce, former Executive Director of the Nevada State Democratic Party
*Chief of Staff: Anatole Jenkins, former National Organizing Director for Kamala Harris For The People
* Vice Chair of Civic Engagement and Voter Participation: Keisha Lance Bottoms
Keisha Lance Bottoms (born January 18, 1970) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 60th mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, from 2018 to 2022. She was elected mayor in 2017. Before becoming mayor, she was a member of the Atlanta City C ...
* Vice Chairs:
**Gretchen Whitmer
Gretchen Esther Whitmer (born August 23, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 49th governor of Michigan since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2001 to 2006 a ...
, Governor of Michigan
The governor of Michigan is the head of state, head of government, and chief executive of the U.S. state of Michigan. The current governor is Gretchen Whitmer, a member of the Democratic Party, who was inaugurated on January 1, 2019, as the stat ...
** Tammy Duckworth
Ladda Tammy Duckworth (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel serving as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she represented Ill ...
, U.S. Senator from Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
** Ken Martin, Chair of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to i ...
** ''Vacant''
* Treasurer: Virginia McGregor
* Secretary: Jason Rae
Jason Rae (born November 25, 1986) is an American activist and Democratic National Committee (DNC) member from Wisconsin. He is the youngest person ever elected to the DNC. On February 5, 2017, he was elected to serve as secretary of the DNC.
...
* Finance Chair: Chris Korge
In addition, a National Advisory Board exists for purposes of fundraising and advising the executive. The present chair is Elizabeth Frawley Bagley
Elizabeth Frawley Bagley (born July 13, 1952) is an American diplomat, attorney, political activist and philanthropist who is the United States ambassador to Brazil in the Biden administration. She previously served as the United States ambassador ...
, former U.S. Ambassador to Portugal.
Chairs of the Democratic National Committee
Deputy Chairs
The Deputy Chair of the Democratic National Committee was re-established by Tom Perez
Thomas Edward Perez (born October 7, 1961) is an American politician and attorney who served as the Chair of the Democratic National Committee from February 2017 until January 2021. Perez was previously Assistant Attorney General for Civil Right ...
in February 2017 after his win in the 2017 DNC Chair race.
After a close victory over Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison
Keith Maurice Ellison (born August 4, 1963) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the 30th attorney general of Minnesota. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Ellison was the U.S. representative for from 2007 to ...
, Perez appointed Ellison as Deputy Chair in an attempt to lessen the divide in the Democratic Party after the contentious 2016 Democratic presidential primaries, which saw conflicts between supporters of Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
and Bernie Sanders
Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...
. Perez was seen as being more in line with the Clinton wing, while Ellison was more in line with the Sanders wing. The role's revival in 2017 has been described by critics as largely titular and ceremonial.
On November 8, 2018, Ellison resigned from the position due to his win in the Minnesota Attorney General election. The position remains unoccupied.
Controversies
Watergate
In the 1970s, the DNC had its head office in the Watergate complex
The Watergate complex is a group of six buildings in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, D.C., in the United States. Covering a total of 10 acres (4 ha) just north of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the buildings incl ...
, which was burglarized by entities working for Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
's administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
during the Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...
.
Chinagate
Chinagate was an alleged effort by the People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
to influence domestic American politics prior to and during the Clinton administration
Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over Re ...
. In 2002, the Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Cam ...
fined the Democratic National Committee $115,000 for its part in fundraising violations in 1996.
Cyber attacks
Cyber attacks and hacks
Hacks may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Hacks'' (1997 film), a 1997 American comedy film
* ''Hacks'' (2002 film), a 2002 independent American film
* '' Hacks: The Inside Story'', a book by Donna Brazile
* ''Hacks'' (TV series), ...
were claimed by or attributed to various individual and groups such as:
* According to committee officials and security experts, two competing Russian intelligence
The Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation ( rus, Служба внешней разведки Российской Федерации, r=Sluzhba vneshney razvedki Rossiyskoy Federatsii , p=ˈsluʐbə ˈvnʲɛʂnʲɪj rɐˈzvʲɛ ...
services were discovered on DNC computer networks. One intelligence service achieved infiltration beginning in the summer of 2015 and the other service breached and roamed the network beginning in April 2016. The two groups accessed emails, chats, and research on an opposing presidential candidate. They were expelled from the DNC system in June 2016.
* The hacker
A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve a goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. Though the term ''hacker'' has become associated in popu ...
Guccifer 2.0
"Guccifer 2.0" is a persona which claimed to be the hacker(s) who gained unauthorized access to the Democratic National Committee (DNC) computer network and then leaked its documents to the media, the website WikiLeaks, and a conference event. S ...
claimed that he hacked into the Democratic National Committee computer network and then leaked its emails to the newspaper ''The Hill''. During a CNN interview with Jake Tapper, Hillary Clinton's campaign manager, Robby Mook
Robert E. Mook (; born December 3, 1979) is an American political strategist. He was the campaign manager for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.
Mook worked on state campaigns and on Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign. He then ...
, cited experts saying that the DNC emails were leaked by the Russians but did not name the experts. The press and cybersecurity firms discredited the Guccifer 2.0 claim, as investigators now believe Guccifer 2.0 was an agent of the G.R.U., Russia's military intelligence service.
2016 email leak
On July 22, 2016, WikiLeaks released approximately 20,000 DNC emails. Critics claimed that the Committee unequally favored Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
and acted in support of her nomination while opposing the candidacy of her primary challenger Bernie Sanders
Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...
. Donna Brazile
Donna Lease Brazile (; born December 15, 1959) is an American political strategist, campaign manager and political analyst who served twice as acting Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She is currently an ABC News contributor, ...
corroborated these allegations in an excerpt of her book published by ''Politico
''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...
'' in November 2017. The leaked emails spanned sixteen months, terminating in May 2016.
The WikiLeaks releases led to the resignations of Chairperson Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Communications Director Luis Miranda, Chief Financial Officer Brad Marshall and Chief Executive Amy Dacey. After she resigned, Wasserman Schultz put out a statement about possible FBI assistance in investigating the hacking and leaks, saying that "the DNC was never contacted by the FBI or any other agency concerned about these intrusions." During a Senate hearing in January 2017, James Comey testified that the FBI requested access to the DNC's servers, but its request was denied. He also testified that old versions of the Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
's servers were breached, but then-current databases were unaffected.
The DNC subsequently filed a lawsuit in federal court against WikiLeaks and others alleging a conspiracy to influence the election.
History
The DNC has existed since 1848. During the 1848 Democratic National Convention
The 1848 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that met from Monday May 22 to Thursday May 25 in Baltimore, Maryland. It was held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for President and Vice president in ...
, a resolution was passed creating the Democratic National Committee, composed of thirty members, one person per state, chosen by the states' delegations, and chaired by Benjamin F. Hallett
Benjamin Franklin Hallett (December 2, 1797 – September 30, 1862) was a Massachusetts lawyer and Democratic Party activist, most notable as the first chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
Benjamin Franklin Hallett was born in Barnst ...
.
See also
* Green National Committee
The Green National Committee (GNC) is the central governing body of the Green Party of the United States. The committee is composed of over 150 delegates from every affiliated state party and recognized caucus. The GNC oversees all national part ...
* Libertarian National Committee
The Libertarian National Committee (LNC) controls and manages the affairs, properties, and funds of the United States Libertarian Party. It is composed of the party officers, five at-large representatives elected every two years at the national c ...
* Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
*Information published by WikiLeaks
Since 2006, the document archive website WikiLeaks has published anonymous submissions of documents that are typically unavailable to the general public.
2006–2008
Apparent Somali assassination order
WikiLeaks posted its first document in De ...
References
Further reading
* Cotter, Cornelius P., and Bernard C. Hennessy, eds.
Politics without Power: The National Party Committees
' (1964)
* Galvin, Daniel J.
The Transformation of Political Institutions: Investments in Institutional Resources and Gradual Change in the National Party Committees
” ''Studies in American Political Development'' 26.1 (April 2012): 50-70; . .
* Goldman, Ralph M. ''The National party Chairmen and Committees: Factionalism at the Top'' (M.E. Sharpe, 1990)
* Heersink, Boris.
Examining Democratic and Republican National Committee Party Branding Activity, 1953–2012
" ''Perspectives on Politics'' (2021): 1-18. . .
* Heersink, Boris.
Trump and the party-in-organization: Presidential control of national party organizations
" ''Journal of Politics'' 80.4 (2018): 1474-1482. . .
* Heersink, Boris.
Party Brands and the Democratic and Republican National Committees, 1952–1976
" ''Studies in American Political Development'' 32.1 (2018): 79-102. . .
* Hejny, Jessica, and Adam Hilton.
Bringing contention in: a critical perspective on political parties as institutions
" ''Studies in Political Economy'' 102.2 (2021): 161-181. . .
* Herrnson, Paul S. “The Evolution of National Party Organizations,” in ''The Oxford Handbook of American Political Parties and Interest Groups'', edited by Louis Sandy Maisel and Jeffrey M. Berry. (Oxford University Press, 2010) pp. 245-264. . .
* Klinkner, Philip A. ''The Losing Parties: Out-Party National Committees, 1956-1993'' (Yale University Press, 1994)
* Pavlov, Eugene, and Natalie Mizik.
Brand Political Positioning: Implications of the 2016 US Presidential Election
" (2020) .
External links
*
The Charter & The Bylaws of the Democratic Party of the United States
(PDF) as amended by the DNC; August 25, 2018
{{Authority control
National Committee
The National Committee ( el, Εθνικό Κομιτάτο) was a Greek political party founded by Epameinondas Deligiorgis.
The party was founded in 1865, and was composed by young revolutionaries who helped to overthrow King Otto, ending his ...
Factions in the Democratic Party (United States)
Political parties established in 1848
Executive committees of political parties
1848 establishments in the United States