With so many people vying for the DFL gubernatorial endorsement, there's a plan to change the rules for choosing the party's candidate at the state convention.
After consulting the campaigns, the DFL rules committee wants to changes the "drop rule," the point when names are dropped from the ballot. The changes will need to be approved at the convention later this month.
Here's how the proposed changes would go:
Candidates who get less than 4 percent of the vote will be dropped after the first ballot. On each following ballot, the drop-off percent will be raised by 4 percent. That means in the second vote, any candidate below 8 percent is out.
If the drop-off rule eliminates all but one candidate, then the top two vote-getters become the remaining candidates.
A candidate must get 60 percent of the votes to win the party endorsement.
Those who have said they'd abide by the party endorsement are state House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, state Rep. Tom Rukavina, state Rep. Paul Thissen and state Sen. John Marty.
Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner and former state Rep. Matt Entenza have said they will move on to the primary without the party's nod. Former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton is going straight to the primary.
