Delegates Prepare for Divided Roll Call

The state delegations at the Democratic National Convention have received their tally sheets to be filled out Wednesday and turned in quickly so the roll call for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton can begin promptly at 5 p.m. ET. Obama aide Jenny Backus said one nominating speech and two seconding speeches for Clinton will be offered followed by four speeches — one nominating and three seconding speeches — for Obama. The event will take about 30 minutes. Afterward, the tally sheets will be collected and the roll call will begin with each state’s delegation chair reporting the results. Backus refused to answer a direct question seeking to confirm that there will be no stoppage and 50 states will “have their say.” However, The Associated Press reported that the roll call will continue until all votes are counted or someone asks the delegates to give the nomination to Obama by acclamation. Democratic officials close to Clinton said they plan to have someone — ... (link)