CHICAGO – When you’re watching the ceremonies play out at the United Center during the Democratic National Convention this week, you’ll see every U.S. state and territory represented by their varying number of delegates.
But there’s also a unique group you’ll see located above the delegation from Nevada, below Connecticut, and next to American Samoa: delegates living overseas.
The group is represented by U.S. citizens living in over 100 different countries all around the world. One of those delegates is Andrew Tucker, a U.S. citizen living in The Netherlands.
“I live in Haarlem, the original Haarlem”, Tucker told me Wednesday, referencing the city near Amsterdam founded in 1245.
Tucker explained to me how the delegate voting process works for those living abroad.
“Each country has its own primary system, so we can go physically or we can email our votes in” says Tucker. “It happens for a week’s time since we’re in all sorts of different time zones, it’s not just one day like it would be in Wisconsin, for example”.
The group Democrats Abroad is recognized as a “state” Party by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and is represented on the DNC by eight voting members.
While the theme for Wednesday at the DNC is officially “A Fight For Our Freedoms”, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear unofficially dubbed it “Walz Wednesday” during the day’s press briefing. And as it turns out, a few of the delegates at the convention are still learning more about the Minnesota governor.
Tucker was one of hundreds of convention attendees heading to the LGBTQ caucus event at McCormick Place, one of two DNC venues in Chicago. He says it was Walz’s work with the LGBTQ+ community dating back to his time teaching at Mankato West High School that won him over despite little other knowledge prior to his selection as the party’s vice presidential nominee.
“His starting the gay-straight alliance when he was a teacher, I didn’t even know that [until recently]. I’m really, really, really looking forward to hearing him speak”.
Walz is Wednesday’s keynote speaker and will officially accept the party’s nomination tonight following speeches from several A-list Democrats including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies, House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, and former President Bill Clinton.
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