SEQUIM — Continuing a civic tradition begun long ago, representatives of the Clallam County Democratic Party will gather Saturday at a convention to choose delegates who will help shape a party platform and select a presidential candidate for November.
The event, set for 9 a.m. at the Guy Cole Convention Center at Carrie Blake Park in Sequim, will likely draw close to 500 people, said John Pollack, state committee chair for the county’s Democratic Central Committee.
“We’ll be expecting quite a big crowd,” Pollack said. “It will be really exciting.”
Although Democratic Sen. John F. Kerry of Massachusetts has been dubbed, at least unofficially, as the party’s challenger to President Bush for the 2004 showdown, the local and statewide conventions play an important role in preserving grass-roots political participation, Pollack said.
Delegates may vote to nominate someone other than Kerry — and it’s likely some will, Pollack said.
Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, whose campaign got an early boost last fall but sputtered as time went on, has supporters in Clallam.
Dean officially dropped his candidacy in mid-February.
