Leapfrog Update: Florida Backing Down; Candidates Off The Michigan Ballot?

Caucus Date Leapfrog Update: Florida Backing Down; Candidates Off The Michigan Ballot?

The Detroit Free Press reports that John Edwards may raise the stakes in the fight against states that violate the Democratic National Committee's primary/caucus calendar -- by withdrawing his name from the Michigan primary ballot.

The move would be especially tough for Edwards. He is expected to do well in Michigan, and his national campaign manager, former House Democratic whip David Bonior, hails from the state.

At the Barack Obama rally before the Harkin Steak Fry Sunday, Obama advisor David Axelrod was noncommittal when asked if his candidate would make the same move.

"We don't have a full understanding yet of what the approach of the party's going to be, so I think it's a little bit premature to talk about it," Axelrod told Iowa Independent. "Obviously, we've signed the early state pledge, and we're going to honor that. We'll see what the implications of that are."

Last week the Michigan political parties submitted lists of potential candidates to the secretary of state. Candidates have until Oct. 9 to withdraw from the Jan. 15 rogue primary. The eight debating Democrats and nine top Republicans (debate participants plus Fred Thompson) are currently listed.

While Michigan seems to be forging ahead in its stated goal of displacing Iowa and New Hampshire, Florida Democrats are backing down -- sort of. The Miami Herald reports the state is likely to move this week to make the Jan. 29 primary a non-binding beauty contest:

Florida Democrats will instead decide some time after Jan. 29 which presidential candidate is the winner of the state's delegates to the national convention.

One suggested plan is to have Democrats vote by mail, although another proposal that may win out calls for Democrats to hold a state convention sometime after Feb. 5.

Sunshine State Democrats face a Sept. 29 deadline to move delegate selection to Feb. 5 or later or lose all their national convention delegates.

Floridian Ron Gunzburger of Politics1 says Florida will get to have it both ways:

Based upon the way the media covers the early contests, the Florida primary -- with or without delegates, or, now, with (GOP) and without (Dem) -- will still get extensive national media coverage because it would be too complex to explain this hybrid primary in a 14-second sound bite.