More than 400 members of Democratic National Committee are gathering on Saturday to choose the party’s next chairman, who will help guide Democrats as they aim to claw back power after their 2024 defeats.
The race has unfolded as Democrats debate how to oppose President Trump after his return to the White House. The candidates and D.N.C. members, however, have spent far more time wrangling over picayune internal considerations like consulting contracts, budgetary allocations and the influence of the party’s major donors.
The front-runners are two state party chairmen: Ken Martin, 51, of Minnesota and Ben Wikler, 43, of Wisconsin. The contest also includes two onetime presidential candidates, former Gov. Martin O’Malley of Maryland and the author Marianne Williamson, as well as one former presidential campaign manager, Faiz Shakir, who oversaw Senator Bernie Sanders’s 2020 bid.
Here are six things to watch as Democratic officials meet just outside Washington:
Will a secret election have plot twists?
The vote will be held among party insiders — the 448 members of the national committee.
By most accounts, Mr. Martin has accumulated the largest level of support. But the balloting will be held in private, so any promises made in advance could melt away once voting begins. (Candidates do have the right to see how each member voted, though those results may not become public until well after the vote.)
As of late Friday, Mr. Martin had claimed more than 200 public endorsements, Mr. Wikler had more than 80 and Mr. O’Malley had 31. Each candidate has boasted of private promises of support that are far higher, though those figures are impossible to confirm.
Will someone win on the first ballot?
If so, it will probably be Mr. Martin. If not, we could be in for a wild ride.
A candidate will need a majority of votes, or 225, to become the party chair. If no one reaches that threshold on the first ballot, voting will continue on successive ballots until someone is pushed over the top.
