Washington Superdelegates Still Endorsing Clinton, Spurning Pro-Sanders Majority of State Voters

Governor Inslee is out of step with his Democratic constituents. WA.Gov

A whopping seventy-two percent of Washington Democrats voted for Bernie Sanders in the state's caucus on Saturday. The socialist Senator from Vermont won every single county in the state.

But Governor Jay Inslee, a superdelegate who can cast his own vote for whoever he wants at the national convention in July, isn't budging on his support for Sanders' opponent, Hillary Clinton.

"Superdelegates find themselves dramatically opposed to their party’s grassroots," said former Seattle mayor Mike McGinn, in an op-ed blasting the superdelegate system yesterday.

All of the top Democratic politicians in Washington have endorsed Clinton: Inslee, Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, as well as the six members of the Democratic congressional delegation. "As far as I know, no one has changed their support," said Jamal Raad, a party spokesperson.

Sanders will get most of Washington's 101 regular delegates, but Clinton is poised to pick up most of Washington's 17 superdelegates. Nationwide, Clinton is crushing it with superdelegates—mostly elected officials and party insiders—right now. She has 469 to Sanders' 29.

But in recent days, superdelegates have come out for Sanders in Alaska, Utah, and Idaho. Officials in those states told Politico they wanted to align with their constituents' views. "I did it basically the night after our caucuses," said Idaho Democratic Party chairman Bert Marley.

Washington's own State Democratic Party chairman, Jaxon Ravens, had said he would announce his superdelegate endorsement after the caucus. But the party now says he is "uncommitted for the foreseeable future."

It would make sense for Sanders voters to "pressure our state’s superdelegates to support Bernie," said Democracy for America Senior Campaign Manager Robert Cruickshank, whose organization has launched a petition calling on superdelegates to support the popularly-elected nominee.

"It just really starkly highlights how Democratic voters are not represented by the Democratic party," said Socialist Alternative's Philip Locker. "[But] If there's strong enough pressure and they feel enough heat, I'm sure their positions will evolve."

Here's what Sanders himself said on CNN on Sunday:

I think the momentum is with us. A lot of these superdelegates may rethink their position with Hillary Clinton. A lot have not yet declared. And then you have got superdelegates who are in states where we win by 40 or 50 points. I think their own constituents are going to say to them, 'Hey, why don't you support the people of our state, vote for Sanders?'

Want to bug Washington's pro-Clinton superdelegates about this? Here you go. You have to use their janky websites to e-mail them: