Democrats Set Convention Diversity Goals
Staff & Wire Reports

Intent on projecting diversity, California Democrats are working to ensure that almost three-fourths of their national convention delegates fit into a minority group, racial or otherwise.

In a recommendation sent out this month to 2,500 activists, the state party reminded them of diversity goals for its 495 delegates and alternates -- about 12 percent of the national total -- to be 26 percent Latino, 16 percent black, 10 percent disabled, 9 percent Asian-Pacific Islander, 5 percent gay, 5 percent lesbian and 1 percent Indian. Half should be men and half women, said the memo, drafted by party spokesman Bob Mulholland.

“California has changed, and the California Democratic Party has kept up with it,” Mulholland said. “It’s certainly a plus to have on national TV a delegation that looks like America.”

State First Vice Chair Alicia Wang pointed out that the goals had been in place since 1996. “We have diversity goals that we want to remind our folks of,” she said. “We would like to see these diversity goals met in every district.”

According to Democratic National Committee rules require states to study and analyze the Democratic electorate and develop goals for their delegations that reflect what they find. California Democratic Party officials formulated their goals based on California’s population and voter exit polls, Mulholland said.

He said he is optimistic the party can meet or exceed its targets, especially given that “some people might fill three or four categories.” In 1996, when the goals were identical to those set this year, the party achieved its target for blacks, American Indians and gays, but fell short in the other categories.

Actual Asian American representation has fallen slightly short in 1992 and 1996, when they were about 7 or 8 percent, respectively, Wangsaid. And considering that California’s presence is that of a “6,000 pound gorilla” within party ranks, she said the L.A. convention poses especially good opportunities for API politicos. “Asians, please get out there and run because we’ve been a little bit under.”

The party’s strong affirmative-action push follows a move by the state’s top Democrat, Gov. Gray Davis, that struck a blow against such preferences.

Davis vetoed a bill last month that would have declared outreach programs for minorities and women permissible despite Proposition 209, which banned most publicly sponsored affirmative action programs. Mulholland said an affirmative action push by a party is completely unrelated to Davis’ action.

“We’re a political party, and as we build our delegation, we ought to have the most diversified delegation,” Mulholland said. “The year 2000 is a unique case -- we’re going to get lots of TV coverage” at the nominating convention.

That image is important, because it will convey inclusiveness to voters watching the convention through the news media, he said.

Republicans deride the targets as tokenism.

The Republican Party has no such mandate for diversity, said Stuart DeVeaux, spokesman for the state GOP and a former Republican National Committee official.

“We are an inclusive party,” DeVeaux said. “If you’re a white male and you’ve done nothing wrong, you’re discriminated against by the Democratic Party.”

Replied Mulholland: “Our delegation ... will reflect almost every community in California, and that will bode well for candidates in fall elections. ... This will be day and night compared to the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia.”

“Diversity is always a good thing period. I”m not sure it’s something you can mandate,” said Rodney Leong, a member of San Francisco’s Republican County Central Committee.

“It’s very dangerous for an organization to say we want X percent of these people, X percent of those people. It looks like you are shooting for specific quotas for photo ops.”

Democratic delegates will be elected in congressional caucuses Jan. 23, and nominees can run as advocates of either Al Gore or Bill Bradley. For more information, call the state party at 916-442-5707 or email info@ca-dem.org. Web site: www. ca-dem.org.