Associated Press
Sunday, August 20, 2006

CHICAGO, Aug. 19 -- Democrats agreed to shake up tradition Saturday by wedging Nevada between Iowa's leadoff caucuses and the New Hampshire primary in the 2008 presidential nominating calendar and adding South Carolina soon afterward.

The addition of Nevada's caucuses and the South Carolina primary to a presidential calendar long dominated by Iowa and New Hampshire is intended to give a greater voice to Hispanics and blacks -- minorities critical to Democrats' success.

Nevada has a sizable Hispanic population while South Carolina has a high concentration of black voters. The early contests in those states will give Democrats more prominence in the Southeast and the Southwest, regions that tend to support Republicans.

Advocates of the plan, which the Democratic National Committee passed on a voice vote, say it will force Democratic presidential candidates to develop a broader message that extends beyond the concerns of voters in Iowa and New Hampshire.

But the altered schedule poses risks. New Hampshire, for example, is threatening to ignore the committee's plan by moving its primary even earlier, despite the possibility that the Democratic Party would punish candidates who campaign in states with schedules that violate party rules.

The plan would keep Iowa's caucuses in their leadoff position Jan. 14. Nevada would follow with its own caucuses Jan. 19. New Hampshire would retain its status as the first-in-the-nation primary, with voting Jan. 22. South Carolina would hold its primary Jan. 29.

Eager to keep states from jumping in line, the DNC also passed enforcement rules that would punish candidates who campaign in states that set their own schedules. Some party members worry that would create an unseemly intraparty fight when Democrats can least afford it.

Under the rules, candidates who venture into states that ignore the party schedule would not get any delegates from those contests. But some DNC members were unsure how effective such a sanction would be, particularly if the states are small and have few delegates to offer.

Others complain that the added contests in Nevada and South Carolina would squeeze so many contests early in the nomination process that the party's nominee could be determined by February, before most states even get a chance to vote.