We like to think that the Democratic primary is all about one Democrat, one vote. But in fact certain leaders of the Democratic party get 6,650 votes to our one. These few people alone make up 38% of the votes needed to clinch the Democratic nomination.
It is odd that a party that titles itself the Democratic party has such a patently undemocratic candidate selection process. But the powerful in the party don't want to risk leaving the selection of the Democratic candidate up to us lowly registered Democrats. Vote in anyone we want? How quaint!
So, to insure that those in power stay in power, the concept of the "Superdelegate" was developed. These would be the faithful, party leaders whom, after all, should have (in their own view) final say over who the nominee is. These 718 Superdelegates have, collectively, 38% of the votes necessary to get the nomination. So a wild card candidate, say a Bernie Sanders, if they could not capture a significant number of these leading Democrats, would have virtually no chance of getting such a huge majority of the "one person, one vote" delegates that they could take the nomination against the will of the party faithful.
Mother Jones reported, way back in early November of 2013, that the Superdelegates were "Already Kissing Up to Hillary" in a headline, with the lede "She hasn't even decided if she's running—and the sucking-up has already begun."
So if these Democratic leaders, the party faithful, who hold so many of the cards, have already cast their lots with Clinton, can Sanders possibly win the nomination, no matter how much Democratic voters prefer him? Can the Superdelegates be convinced to throw their support to him, or is he too far outside the party? Will the party force Clinton on us as the nominee even if Sanders gets a large majority of the popular vote in the primary?
How will Bernie, how will WE overcome the superdelegate problem?