Editing Superdelegate (section)

====Origins====
In the aftermath of the chaotic [[1968 Democratic National Convention]], the Democratic Party sought to shift the balance of power in the selection of the party's presidential candidate to primary elections and caucuses, mandating that all delegates be chosen via mechanisms open to all party members; these rules were implemented following the recommendations of the [[McGovern-Fraser Commission]].<ref name=Roller>Emma Roller, [https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/12/opinion/campaign-stops/the-not-so-super-delegates.html The Not So Super Delegates], ''New York Times'' (April 12, 2016).</ref> This increased [[grassroots]] control of Democratic conventions.<ref name=wpdsbj82>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=L09OAAAAIBAJ&pg=6993%2C5631446 |work=Spokesman-Review |location=(Spokane, Washington) |agency=(Washington Post) |last=Broder |first=David S. |author-link=David S. Broder |title=Major turnaround by the Democratic Party |date=January 15, 1982 |page=8}}</ref> However, after Democratic nominee [[George McGovern]] lost in a landslide to [[Richard Nixon]] in [[1972 United States presidential election|1972]],<ref name=Roller/> and after a decisive fight over the rules at the [[1980 Democratic National Convention|1980 convention]] between supporters of [[Jimmy Carter]] and supporters of [[Edward M. Kennedy]],<ref name="cqweekly">{{Cite news|last=Nather |first=David |title=Leaping Voters In a Single Bound |newspaper=[[Congressional Quarterly|CQ Weekly]] |page=482 |date=February 25, 2008 |url=http://public.cq.com/docs/cqw/weeklyreport110-000002675899.html  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081127130726/http://public.cq.com/docs/cqw/weeklyreport110-000002675899.html |archive-date=November 27, 2008 }}</ref> followed by Carter's defeat by [[Ronald Reagan]] in [[1980 United States presidential election|1980]],<ref name=Roller/> the party changed its nominating rules again.<ref name=Roller/>

A commission headed by [[Governor of North Carolina|North Carolina Governor]] [[Jim Hunt]] issued a report in 1982, on a 47&ndash;6 vote, to set aside 550 unpledged delegate seats held by party officials, to vote alongside the 3,300 Democratic pledged votes.<ref name=wpdsbj82/> This partial reversal of the trend toward grassroots control was supported by mainstream party leaders in Congress, as well as organized labor.<ref name=wpdsbj82/> It increases the power of the institutional party "regulars" against insurgent "outsider" maverick candidates.<ref name=Roller/><ref name="cqweekly"/> Their initial proposal to have superdelegates represent 30% of all delegates to the national convention was defeated in favor of a compromise proposal by [[Geraldine A. Ferraro]], in which superdelegates made up about 14% of delegates.<ref name=wpdsbj82/><ref name="cqweekly"/> The proportion of superdelegates eventually expanded over time, reaching about 20% at the 2008 convention.<ref name="cqweekly"/>