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Rule 16 and its impact on the 2016 Republican National Convention
 2016 Republican National Convention | |
July 18-21, 2016 Location Cleveland, Ohio | |
President Donald Trump Vice President Mike Pence | |
2016 Convention Rules • Rule 12 • Rule 16 • Rule 40 • Conscience clause • Brokered conventions • RNC Rules Committee • Platform and Platform Committee • RNC Standing Committee on Rules • Republican National Committee | |
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After The Washington Post reported on December 10, 2015, that the Republican National Committee was preparing for the possibility of a brokered convention, members of the Republican Party and the media began to question when and if bound delegates were allowed to vote for another candidate.[1] Rule 16 of the Rules of the Republican Party, which governed the selection, allocation, and binding of delegates to the 2016 national convention, came under increased scrutiny as a result.[2][3][4] This article breaks down the details of Rule 16.
What is Rule 16?
- See also: Republican delegate rules by state, 2016
The Rules of the Republican Party are a series of official guidelines that govern the inner workings of the Republican National Committee (RNC), including how it structures and operates the party’s presidential nominating process and its quadrennial national convention.[5]
These rules are written by the Republic National Convention Rules Committee, a group of 112 party activists who attend the national convention as elected delegates and are responsible for crafting a set of rules that control the proceedings of the national convention.[6][7]
Rule 16, which governs the selection, allocation, and binding of delegates to the national convention, was adopted at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, and was amended three times prior to the 2016 national convention.
As amended in August 2014, Rule 16 contained six sections providing guidelines on the following delegate-related matters:
- The selection, allocation, and binding of delegates;
- The precedence of national party rules over state party rules and law;
- The timing of primaries and caucuses and binding of delegates based on those presidential preference votes;
- The qualifications of delegates;
- The organization of congressional district and state conventions; and
- The conditions governing the granting of waivers for these rules.[5]
Text of Rule 16
(a) Binding and Allocation.
(b) Order of Precedence.Delegates at large and their alternate delegates and delegates from Congressional districts and their alternate delegates to the national convention shall be elected, selected, allocated, or bound in the following manner:
(c) Timing and Allocation.
(d) General.In all elections or selections of delegates or alternate delegates to the national convention, the following rules shall apply:
(e) Conventions.Wherever state law permits or the Republican Party rules of a state require the election of delegates and alternate delegates by convention or there is no applicable state law or Republican Party rule, delegates and alternate delegates to the national convention shall be elected by Congressional district or state conventions pursuant to the following rules:
(f) Certification and filing by the state committees.
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Adoption at the 2012 Republican National Convention
Prior to the 2012 Republican National Convention, delegate selection and allocation were governed by Rule 15 of the Rules of the Republican Party, as adopted in September 2008.[9]
During the Republican primary process in 2012, Ron Paul's presidential campaign secured control over the delegate selection process in several states even though Paul did not win the popular vote in a single primary or caucus. To prevent this from happening in the future, the RNC proposed a change to Rule 15 that would have allowed presidential candidates the right to veto and replace delegates allocated to them.[10] RNC member James Bopp condemned the proposal, saying, "This is the biggest power grab in the history of the Republican Party because it shifts the power to select delegates from the state party to the candidate. And it would make the Republican Party a top-down, not bottom-up party."[11]
Delegates from Texas, Louisiana, Virginia, and several other states vigorously opposed the rule change. The vice chair of the Republican Party of Texas, Melinda Fredricks, called it "an unacceptable infringement on our right to freely choose our delegates to the national convention."[12]
A compromise was reached where the delegate veto would not be implemented. Rule 15, however, would be replaced with Rule 16—a new version of the delegate selection and allocation rule that would, in addition to other functions, void votes cast by bad-faith delegates.[13]
The RNC described the new rule in a message to its membership:
| “ | The resolution that we have reached is straightforward. It simply prevents a bound delegate from nominating or casting a vote for a different presidential candidate than the one to whom the delegate was legally bound by state law or state party rule.
Instead, under this new provision, a delegate who attempts to violate his binding pledge is deemed to have resigned and the Secretary of the Convention will record the improper vote as it should have been cast based on state law or party rule. It leaves the actual selection of delegates up to state parties under state law and state party rules.[12][14] |
” |
Changes to Rule 16 in April 2013
When the RNC met in April 2013 in Los Angeles, California, they voted to change the language of Rule 16(a)(2). According to RNC Chair Reince Priebus, the modification was designed to make clear that delegates must vote for the presidential candidate to whom they are bound at the national convention. If they do not, their vote is voided and recorded as if they had voted for the candidate to whom they are bound.[15][16]
Priebus released the following statement on April 12, 2013, discussing the amendment:
| “ | Rule 16 as passed at convention resolved a perceived problem recognized by many in the 2012 primary process that candidates may have won a statewide vote in which delegates were bound to a specific candidate and then had to come back and win the delegates at another contest which sometimes didn’t reflect the results of statewide presidential preference elections.
Today's amendment clarifies that bound delegates must vote in accordance with state party rules and state law – in other words, delegates cannot claim to support one candidate when elected at the state level and then change their loyalty to someone else later. This rule also ensures that the delegate could not be removed for failing to vote as bound and made clear a presidential candidate cannot veto delegates.[14] |
” |
| —Reince Priebus[15] | ||
| Rule 16(a)(2) as adopted in August 2012: For any manner of binding or allocating delegates under these rules, if a delegate (i) casts a vote for a presidential candidate at the national convention inconsistent with the delegate’s obligation under state law or state party rule, (ii) nominates or demonstrates support under Rule No. 40 for a presidential candidate other than the one to whom the delegate is bound or allocated under state law or state party rule, or (iii) fails in some other way to carry out the delegate’s affirmative duty under state law or state party rule to cast a vote at the national convention for a particular presidential candidate, the delegate shall be deemed to have concurrently resigned as a delegate and the delegate’s improper vote or nomination shall be null and void. Thereafter the secretary of the convention shall record the delegate’s vote or nomination in accordance with the delegate’s obligation under state law or state party rule. This subsection does not apply to delegates who are bound to a candidate who has withdrawn his or her candidacy, suspended or terminated his or her campaign, or publicly released his or her delegates. |
Rule 16(a)(2) as amended in April 2013: The Secretary of the Convention shall faithfully announce and record each delegate’s vote in accordance with the delegate’s obligation under these rules, state law or state party rule. If any delegate bound by these rules, state party rule or state law to vote for a presidential candidate at the national convention demonstrates support under Rule 40 for any person other than the candidate to whom he or she is bound, such support shall not be recognized. Except as provided for by state law or state party rule, no presidential candidate shall have the power to remove a delegate. |
Changes to Rule 16 in January 2014
Rule 16 was again amended at the January 2014 meeting of the RNC in Washington, D.C.
Rule 16(c)(2) was changed to bar winner-take-all primaries and caucuses before March 15. A new section, Rule 16(c)(3), also granted states the authority to establish a minimum threshold that a candidate must reach before he or she becomes eligible to receive delegates. That minimum threshold could not be set higher than 20 percent of the vote.[17][18]
| Rule 16(c)(2) as adopted in August 2012: Any presidential primary, caucus, convention, or other process to elect, select, allocate or bind delegates to the national convention that occurs prior to April 1 in the year in which the national convention is held may provide for the allocation of delegates on a proportional basis. |
Rule 16(c)(2) as amended in January 2014: Any presidential primary, caucus, convention, or other process to elect, select, allocate, or bind delegates to the national convention that occurs prior to March 15 in the year in which the national convention is held shall provide for the allocation of delegates on a proportional basis. |
| Rule 16(c)(3) did not exist in the rules adopted in August 2012. | Rule 16(c)(3) as adopted in January 2014: Proportional allocation of total delegates as required by Rule 16(c)(2) shall be based upon the number of statewide votes cast or the number of congressional district votes cast in proportion to the number of votes received by each candidate. (i) A state may establish by statewide vote or by congressional district a minimum threshold of the percentage of votes received by a candidate that must be reached below which a candidate may receive no delegates, provided such threshold is no higher than twenty percent (20%). (ii) A state may establish by statewide vote or by congressional district a minimum threshold of the percentage of votes received by a candidate that must be reached above which the candidate may receive all the delegates, provided such threshold is no lower than fifty percent (50%). |
Changes to Rule 16 in August 2014
There were three minor modifications to Rule 16 following the August 2014 meeting of the RNC in Chicago, Illinois.[5][19] Language referencing the delegate selection method for the 1988 Republican National Convention was removed from Rule 16(d)(8) and Rule 16(d)(9). Rule 16(e)(3) was also revised to indicate that a state party's website was a sufficient vehicle to advertise district and state conventions.
| Rule 16(d)(8) as adopted in August 2012: Delegates and alternate delegates at large to the national convention when serving as delegates and alternate delegates shall be residents of and duly qualified voters in their respective states. All delegates and alternate delegates allocated as delegates and alternate delegates at large shall be elected at large in the several states; provided, however, that such allocation and method of election may be varied in any state to the extent, and only to the extent, necessary to avoid conflict with state law applicable to the selection of national convention delegates if such varying allocation and method of election were those pursuant to which delegates at large and alternate delegates at large were elected to the 1988 Republican National Convention from that state. |
Rule 16(d)(8) as amended in August 2014: Delegates and alternate delegates at large to the national convention when serving as delegates and alternate delegates shall be residents of and duly qualified voters in their respective states. All delegates and alternate delegates allocated as delegates and alternate delegates at large shall be elected at large in the several states. |
| Rule 16(d)(9) as adopted in August 2012: (9) Delegates and alternate delegates to the national convention representing Congressional districts shall be residents of and qualified voters in said districts respectively then elected and when serving as delegates and alternate delegates. There shall be three (3) delegates and three (3) alternate delegates allocated to represent each Congressional district of the several states, who shall be elected by each such Congressional district; provided, however, that such number of delegates and alternate delegates allocated to represent, and elected by, any Congressional district of a state may be reduced or increased to the extent, and only to the extent, necessary to avoid conflict with state law applicable to the selection of national convention delegates if such varying allocation was that pursuant to which district delegates and alternate district delegates were elected to the 1988 Republican National Convention from the state. |
Rule 16(d)(9) as amended in August 2014: Delegates and alternate delegates to the national convention representing Congressional districts shall be residents of and qualified voters in said districts respectively then elected and when serving as delegates and alternate delegates. There shall be three (3) delegates and three (3) alternate delegates allocated to represent each Congressional district of the several states, who shall be elected by each such Congressional district. |
| Rule 16(e)(3) as adopted in August 2012: Notices of the call for any such caucus, meeting, or convention shall be published in a newspaper or newspapers of general circulation in the county, district, or state, as the case may be, not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the date of such caucus, meeting, or convention. |
Rule 16(e)(3) as amended in August 2014: Notices of the call for any such caucus, meeting, or convention shall be published in a newspaper or newspapers or on the state party’s website or other method sufficient for general circulation in the county, district, or state, as the case may be, not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the date of such caucus, meeting, or convention. |
Argument that delegates were unbound
During the 2016 Republican presidential nomination process, there was debate about whether delegates to the Republican National Convention were bound to vote for the candidate that won their states' primary or caucus.[20][21][22][23]
Most Republican Party officials, like RNC Chairman Reince Priebus and a majority of Rules Committee members, supported the view that the Republican delegate allocation rules set by state parties and state laws were binding, and that pledged delegates were required to vote according to the results of their state’s primary or caucus.[24][25] However, some argued that the state party rules and laws were not binding at the convention. Rather, they argued, Rule 37(b) of the national party rules and historical precedent supported the interpretation that delegates could vote according to their own preferences.[20]
Former Republican National Committee member Curly Haugland wrote:[20]
| “ | The history of the Republican National Convention proves that delegates have always, with the exception of 1976, been free to vote their conscience, and the rule that has protected this right over the last 136 years [Rule 37(b)] remains part of the temporary rules of the 2016 convention. The U.S. Supreme Court’s rulings on the issue also make clear that delegates are free to ignore state laws purporting to bind them, and the one national party rule purporting to bind delegates expires at the start of the convention.
|
” |
Ultimately, the Rules Committee of the Republican National Convention in 2016 adopted a version of Rule 16 of the national party rules that affirmed the requirement for pledged delegates to vote according to how state party rules bound them. The rule said, “The Secretary of the Convention shall faithfully announce and record each delegate’s vote in accordance with the delegate’s obligation under Rule No. 16(a)(1), state law, or state party rule.” The Rules Committee also voted to amend Rule 37 with an additional clause saying, “Nothing in this rule shall be construed to prohibit the binding of delegates pursuant to Rule No. 16(a).” Steve Scheffler, a Rules Committee member and member of the Republican National Committee, said, “The voters have spoken. Why would 112 people [members of the Rules Committee] say, ‘We don’t care what you did, we’re going to set our own rules?’”[26]
Click on the following links to learn more about arguments for and against this interpretation of delegate binding:
- Green Papers: "The Ties that Bind–or Do They?" (March 19, 2016)
- The Hill: "All Delegates Are Unbound" (July 11, 2016)
- National Review: “Not a Single Republican Delegate Is ‘Bound’ to Donald Trump” (June 9, 2016)
- The Hill: “GOP delegates are legitimately bound, deal with it” (July 7, 2016)
Rule 16 and 2016 Republican National Convention
- See also: RNC Rules Committee, 2016
Under Rule 12, as adopted in August 2012, Rule 16 could not be amended by the Republican National Committee after September 30, 2014.[5]
| “ | The Republican National Committee may, by three-fourths (3/4) vote of its entire membership, amend Rule Nos. 1-11 and 13-25. Any such amendment shall be considered by the Republican National Committee only if it was passed by a majority vote of the Standing Committee on Rules after having been submitted in writing at least ten (10) days in advance of its consideration by the Republican National Committee and shall take effect thirty (30) days after adoption. No such amendment shall be adopted after September 30, 2014.[14] | ” |
| —Rule 12 of Rules of the Republican Party (2012)[5] | ||
Rule 42 in 2012 version of the rules identified some rules as "temporary...for the next convention," but Rule 16 was not among them.[5]
According to Convention Rules Committee member Curly Haugland, however, every rule, including Rule 16, could be nullified when the national convention began in July 2016. In an op-ed for Breitbart in December 2015, Haugland argued that because the preamble of the Rules of the Republican Party states that the subsequent rules are only adopted "until the next national convention," those rules could not restrain delegates or direct how they vote at the 2016 Republican National Convention.[27]
Haugland also noted in an interview in September 2015 that some of the party's rules appear to be internally contradictory. For example, Rule 16(a)(1) allows for winner-take-all primary contests. Rule 38, however, prohibits a state delegation from casting "its entire vote as a unit as determined by a majority vote of the delegation," Haugland noted.[5][28][29]
Another member of the Convention Rules Committee, Morton Blackwell, said a modification to the delegate binding rules was "highly unlikely." He continued, "In fact, I believe that while it was possible in January [2016] to dispassionately discuss changes of the rules respecting the procedures at the convention in terms of what is most fair and what is most helpful to the Republican Party, that time has passed.”[30]
On April 3, 2016, RNC Chair Reince Priebus agreed with Blackwell that delegates would remain bound. "There's no way around it. If a delegate is bound to a candidate, even if that delegate decides later, 'I don't care, I'm not voting for that person,' the secretary at the convention will read the roll as if that delegate voted for the person that they're bound to, period," Priebus said.[31]
Changes to Rule 16 at the 2016 national convention
Changes to Rule 16 were minimal at the 2016 national convention and largely confined to clarification in the rule's wording. The rules committee met on July 14, 2016. The rules package that it passed that evening was approved by the convention body on July 18, 2016. Note that the 2016 Rules Committee renewed Rule 12, granting the Republican National Committee the authority to amend Rule 16 between July 2016 and September 2018. The following changes were made to Rule 16 at the 2016 convention:
16a2
| Rule 16a2 before the 2016 convention: (2) The Secretary of the Convention shall faithfully announce and record each delegate’s vote in accordance with the delegate’s obligation under these rules, state law or state party rule. If any delegate bound by these rules, state party rule or state law to vote for a presidential candidate at the national convention demonstrates support under Rule 40 for any person other than the candidate to whom he or she is bound, such support shall not be recognized. Except as provided for by state law or state party rule, no presidential candidate shall have the power to remove a delegate. | Rule 16a2 after the 2016 convention: (2) The Secretary of the Convention shall faithfully announce and record each delegate’s vote in accordance with the delegate’s obligation under ''Rule No. 16(a)(1)'', state law, or state party rule. If any delegate bound by ''Rule No. 16(a)(1)'', state party rule, or state law to vote for a presidential candidate at the national convention demonstrates support under Rule No. 40 for any person other than the candidate to whom he or she is bound, such support shall not be recognized. ''Notwithstanding the provisions of Rule No. 40 regarding formally placing a name in nomination for President of the United States and Vice President of the United States, the votes of all credentialed delegates properly cast according to Rule No. 16(a)(1), state party rule, and state law shall be reported by the state delegation chairman and repeated by the Convention Secretary.'' Except as provided for by state law or state party rule, no presidential candidate shall have the power to remove a delegate." |
See also
- Republican National Committee
- Republican National Convention rules, 2012
- Republican National Convention, 2016
- Rule 40 and its impact on the 2016 Republican National Convention
Footnotes
- ↑ The Washington Post, "GOP preparing for contested convention," December 10, 2015
- ↑ NBC News, "What Is a Brokered Convention? GOP Rules Favor Trump," March 10, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, "This is what happens if Republicans face a brokered convention," December 12, 2015
- ↑ National Review, "Reading Rule 40: It Will Not Make or Break Either Trump or Cruz," April 14, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Republican National Committee, "Rules of the Republican Party (2012)," accessed May 18, 2016
- ↑ Washington Examiner, "Control the rules committee, control the contested convention," March 16, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Meet the Rules Committee: 112 people who may decide the Republican nominee," April 12, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source.
- ↑ Republican National Committee, "Rules of the Republican Party (2008)," accessed May 18, 2016
- ↑ The Daily Beast, "Rules Change Sparks Grassroots Boos at GOP Convention," August 29, 2012
- ↑ ABC News, "GOP Convention Floor Fight Threat Looms," August 27, 2012
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 The Houston Chronicle, "Republicans reach rules change deal to avert floor fight with Texans, Ron Paul backers," August 27, 2012
- ↑ CNN, "Rules fight sparks drama at RNC," August 28, 2012
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Republican National Committee, "RNC Statement on Changes to Rules of the Republican Party," April 12, 2013
- ↑ Frontloading HQ, "Throwing Out Convention Votes?" December 14, 2015
- ↑ Republican Party of Texas, "2014 RNC Winter Meeting Recap," accessed May 18, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "RNC passes '16 calendar tweaks," January 24, 2014
- ↑ CBS News, "RNC officially approves Cleveland as 2016 convention host," August 8, 2014
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 The Hill, "All delegates are unbound," July 11, 2016
- ↑ National Review, "Not a Single Republican Delegate Is ‘Bound’ to Donald Trump," June 9, 2016
- ↑ The Hill, "GOP delegates are legitimately bound, deal with it," July 7, 2016
- ↑ The Green Papers, "THE TIES THAT BIND-- OR DO THEY?" March 19, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Never Trump movement gets little help from convention rules panel roster," June 23, 2016
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Anti-Donald Trump Forces See Convention Coup as Within Reach," July 6, 2016
- ↑ The New York Times, "Donald Trump and R.N.C. Crack Down on Rebelling Delegates," June 26, 2016
- ↑ Breitbart, "GOP Field Must Use 2016 To Force Conservative Primary Reform," December 14, 2015
- ↑ AlterNet, "Can GOP Party Bosses Rig the Rules to Keep Trump from Winning? You Bet!" September 14, 2015
- ↑ Bustle, "Can GOP Delegates Vote For Whoever They Want At The Convention?" March 17, 2016
- ↑ The Daily Caller, "RNC Rules Member: Changes To Binding Delegates ‘Unlikely,'" March 16, 2016
- ↑ NBC News, "Meet the Press (Transcript)," April 3, 2016
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