The D.C. Council will hold an emergency vote to put Bernie Sanders' name on the Democratic primary ballot after the D.C. Democratic Party submitted registration paperwork a day late and a voter filed a challenge.
The D.C. Board of Elections determined the board cannot certify Sanders for inclusion on the June 14 primary ballot because the local Democratic party submitted his name, as well as Hillary Clinton's, one day after the legally binding deadline, sources closes to the board said.
A Democratic voter in D.C. filed a challenge against the Sanders campaign's registration. No complaint was filed against Clinton's registration. The period in which a challenge can be filed has passed.
D.C. Council Member-at-Large Anita Bonds, who is chairwoman of the D.C. Democratic Party, is preparing emergency legislation to clear up the issue. The vote could occur as early as Tuesday.
As News4 was first to report, the Sanders campaign, as well as Hillary Clinton's campaign, each submitted registration fees of $2,500 on time earlier this month in advance of the June 14 Democratic primary.
But D.C. Democrats did not email the candidates' registration information to the D.C. Board of Elections until a day after the registration deadline of March 16.
Bonds said in a memo to Council Chairman Phil Mendelson proposing the vote that parties should be given 24 hours between when candidates register with parties and when parties must submit the registration information to the Board of Elections.
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Sanders' camp had until 7 p.m. March 16 to register with the D.C. Democrats, but the Board of Elections closed that day at 4:45 p.m.
A Sanders spokesman said the campaign believes D.C. residents still will be able to cast their votes for the candidate.
"We did what D.C. law requires in order to get Bernie on the ballot, and we are confident he will be on the ballot," the spokesman said in a statement.
News4's Andrea Swalec contributed to this report.
