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Monday, Jul. 13, 2020

If a presidential nominee drops out of the race, are there rules for what would happen?

William Boger, Gigafact
yes

If either major party's expected Presidential nominee were for some reason to decline or be unable to accept the nomination, the convention delegates would select a replacement. In recent decades convention outcomes have usually been locked in well before the formal process, as the primary process has driven the decision.

If a nominee were for some reason to be unable to continue after the convention, each party has rules. The GOP's Rule 9 states that the party has to either reconvene the convention or put the choice to its national committee. In the case of the Democrats, a decision on whom to put forward falls to the national committee.

In 1972, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee dropped out some days after the convention. The committee approved the candidate's choice of another running mate.

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