Democrats In Florida Say No To Revote

Florida Democrats reversed course yesterday and declared dead their plans to hold a do-over primary election to settle the dispute over seating their delegation to the national convention in Denver.

Karen Thurman, the state's Democratic Party chairman, said thousands of people had responded negatively to her proposal for a vote-by-mail primary in early June.

"We spent the weekend reviewing your messages, and while your reasons vary widely, the consensus is clear: Florida doesn't want to vote again," she wrote. "So we won't. A party-run primary or caucus has been ruled out, and it's simply not possible for the state to hold another election, even if the Party were to pay for it."

That leaves the fate of the state's delegation in the hands of the Democratic National Committee. Its rules and bylaws committee stripped Florida of its convention delegates after the state defied the DNC and moved up its primary.

A similar penalty was assessed to Michigan for moving up its primary, and efforts by that state's legislature to approve a revote have stalled. Legislators are awaiting advance approval by the two presidential campaigns.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) won both primaries. Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) campaigned in neither state and was not on the Michigan ballot.

Clinton spokesman Phil Singer expressed disappointment with Florida's decision, saying it "brings us no closer to counting the votes of the nearly 1.7 million people who voted in January."

Obama campaign officials have not said whether they approve of the Michigan plan. Clinton aides attempted to pressure their opponent by saying in a statement, "If Barack Obama's campaign stands in the way of a new vote, he will be putting his own political interests ahead of the people of Michigan."

Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor said, "We received a very complex proposal for Michigan revote legislation today and are reviewing it to make sure that any solution for Michigan is fair and practical."