Erin Sullivan Lally's campaign headquarters to become an Ohio delegate for Hillary Clinton is the living room of her Cleveland home. As two of her five kids play upstairs, Lally picks up toys and stray socks hiding under sofas and outlines her strategy:
Lally: Free pizza and beer.
OK. So her plan involves a little more than that. In Ohio, Democrats elect their slates of delegates at special gatherings nicknamed 'Delegate night.' That'll be on January 3rd. Lally plans to fill the house.
Lally: Well, I'm inviting family and friends, I'm mailing them post cards. I've got a place where I'm going to give free food and drinks. And I've got a bus. I'm going to try and take as many of my supporters on a bus and take them to the vote to make sure they actually show up.
Lally admits she's taking her effort to an extreme. It helps that she's a former state legislator who now designs campaign literature. She figures she'll shell out several hundred dollars to try and win enough votes to go to the Democratic National Convention next summer.
Lally: Anybody who wants to run as a delegate needs only bring your family, friends and supporters to the vote which is simple phone call. I'm taking this the next level up because I really want to do this. I'm excited about the first woman president which is a part of history and I want to be a part of history.
In the old days, the party convention was where the delegates would get together, debate issues in the platform, and elect the party's nominee for President. These days, that nomination is usually wrapped up months before the convention. Delegates have to pay their own way and listen to lots of speeches. I wondered what the big deal was. I went to see Deborah Burstion-Donbraye.
Saito: I wondered if you could explain, sort of what does a delegate do? What did you do?
Burstion-Donbraye: Laughing
Saito: You laugh. Why do you laugh?
Burstion-Donbraye: Laughing
Burstion-Donbraye went to the Republican National Convention in New York City four years ago. She spent about $3000 to stand on the convention floor and have her view of the stage blocked by former Ohio Governor Bob Taft's head. But she loved it. Burstion-Donbraye had been George W. Bush's press secretary back when he first ran for Governor of Texas. And she wanted to represent him after she moved back to Ohio.
