PHILADELPHIA _ Democrats remain sharply divided over whether superdelegates should continue to help choose the party's presidential nominee, an issue that was emotionally charged during this year's bitterly contested primaries.
Delegates debated the issue hotly at a rules committee meeting Saturday, two days before the Democratic National Convention will convene in Philadelphia to nominate Hillary Clinton.
Unless the dispute is resolved, it could spill onto the convention floor, creating a messy spectacle for Clinton _ who drew heavy support from superdelegates in her primary battle with Bernie Sanders.
Sanders and his supporters want to eliminate, or at least limit, the influence of superdelegates. The term refers to hundreds of party leaders and elected officials who can throw their support to a candidate independent of state primary results.
Sanders has argued that they play an undemocratic role in the nomination process and put his campaign at a disadvantage when Clinton locked up most of the superdelegates early in the primary season. Some had vowed to support her before the first primary vote was cast.
But Clinton ultimately captured the nomination because she won more votes and more pledged delegates overall than the Vermont senator.
Opponents of the current system, which was set up more than two decades ago, fear political insiders could override primary voters in the future.
Eliminating superdelegates would show the party "values the voice of the people over the influence of a well-connected few," said J. Aaron Regunberg, a Rhode Island state representative.
"This is not about this election," said Diane Russell, a Maine state representative. "This is about a generation of elections going forward."
Black members of Congress argued to leave the system in place because it helps give minorities a greater voice in the nomination process.
Party leaders also don't want to lose their influence or allow a situation where elected officials would have to run against their own constituents for a delegate slot.
"We have been the cornerstone of building an inclusive party," said Donna Brazile, a superdelegate and Democratic strategist. "I don't think anyone should remove us from the room."
Multiple proposals to modify the system were voted down Saturday as representatives for Sanders and Clinton tried to find an acceptable compromise.
Late Saturday afternoon, there appeared enough support for a so-called "minority report," which could allow committee members to seek another vote on the convention floor this week.
The superdelegate system was created as an attempt to balance the voices of voters and political insiders after the landslide defeats of Democratic nominees George McGovern in 1972 and President Jimmy Carter in 1980.
The superdelegate system was reviewed after the 2008 election, when a Democratic commission said their influence should be sharply reduced. Party leaders ultimately did not follow that recommendation.
On Saturday, some in the committee meeting recommended sending the dispute to another commission for further review. But Sanders supporters fought that idea.
"We have traveled very far. We have spent a lot of money," said Katrina Bergstrom, a committee member from California. "There is no better time than right now to get this done."
