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                 Being a Delegate at the Democratic Convention

   by Kane Farabaugh

   Several years ago, when 33-year-old Angie Morelli was serving as a U.S.
   Marine in Afghanistan, she would never have guessed that she would be a
   delegate at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Philadelphia
   this week.

   "I grew up in a Republican household," she told VOA in an interview on
   her first day at the DNC. "I am a U.S. Marine. I got out and own a
   small business. I'm also Jewish, and these are all the demographics you
   see with a Republican."

   Nevertheless, she was at the epicenter of the biggest Democratic party
   this election cycle, and she wasn't a bystander. She was a participant.
   The reason boiled down to one man.

   "When I found out that Bernie Sanders was running for President, I
   changed my voter registration from Republican to Democrat, and donated
   the first $100 I have ever donated towards a candidate."

   That was almost a year ago, and she's been marching forward as an
   ardent supporter ever since.

   ''

   Hurdles

   But on this day of firsts for Morelli, a lot was in her way. First, the
   weather.

   "It's supposed to be the hottest day of the summer in Philadelphia,"
   she explained. "We're from Nevada, and we're not used to this
   humidity."

   Then, the living arrangements.

   "Just having to try to finagle a bathroom schedule with the four other
   people I am staying with at this hotel."

   A hotel located in the center of Philadelphia, in a room that cost
   about $600 a night. Her day started on the 28th floor for what she
   thought was a breakfast meeting.

   "It was supposed to be a delegation breakfast, and that did not
   happen," she said, smiling. "It was a meeting, but we did not get any
   food."

   Lack of food, hot weather, challenging living arrangements... she could
   cope with. She served in a combat zone with the U.S. military.

   But then there was the meeting itself. VOA was not allowed in, but
   Morelli said emotions were high between the Hillary Clinton and Bernie
   Sanders supporters within the Nevada delegation.

   "I thought for a very long time it was going to be a somewhat calmer
   convention especially after Bernie came out, and he endorsed Hillary,"
   Morelli said, "but I think that all kind of went away whenever we saw
   the Wikileaks come out."

   No capital 'D' or 'R'

   Emails attributed to members of the Democratic National Committee that
   made their way on a searchable Wikileaks site have fueled claims by
   Bernie Sanders supporters, Morelli among them, that the primary
   campaign was rigged against Sanders.

   But she was encouraged by the prospect of a proposed future meeting
   with Democratic party leaders in Nevada to discuss some of her
   concerns, chief among them voter disenfranchisement as a result of the
   Wikileaks revelations.

   ''

   As she walked out of the meeting, the one absent of food, she received
   her credential to get into the DNC, and she gleefully pried the
   envelope open to reveal her delegate pass.

   This may have been the high point for Morelli on day one of the DNC.

   It was right before the hotel elevator malfunctioned, forcing her and a
   handful of other delegates to briskly walk down the seemingly endless
   flights of stairs.

   She got to the ground floor just in time to catch a shuttle bus that
   would deliver her to a meeting with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.

   There, Morelli's disappointment mounted as Sanders' efforts at party
   unity, urging delegates to vote for Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine, were
   drowned out by the boos of a majority of those in the room.

   Morelli says she wasn't one of those booing, but "you can't just go
   from 'Ra, Ra Bernie' to 'Ra, Ra Hillary,'" she told VOA.

   "When I make my decision as to who I'm going to vote for, I don't look
   to see if it's a capitol 'D' or capitol 'R'," referring to the
   Democratic or Republican party, "I look at who the person is, and who
   the person stands for, and whether or not I actually believe that they
   are going to fulfill the things they are promising they are going to
   do. And we need to start making a decision based on those lines, rather
   than just voting 'R' all the way down or 'D' all the way down."

   Getting to the convention

   Morelli left the Sanders event further deflated, searching for some
   solace in the excitement she still had for the experience of being a
   first time delegate about to attend her first national party
   convention. But first, she had to get there.

   Which meant she needed to end her interview with VOA, quickly grab her
   things, and scramble to find a shuttle bus that could transport her the
   five miles between her hotel and the convention site... on time. It
   proved to be a difficult goal.

   By the time she arrived outside the hotel at the shuttle stop, it
   appeared as if most of the buses had stopped running. After a
   twenty-minute wait, a bus arrived, and everyone quickly boarded, and
   then, promptly waited. And waited.

   ''Traffic had ground to a standstill as the clock ticked down to the
   start of the convention. The bus wasn't moving.

   "This is kind of ridiculous. I'm sure that all of these people are very
   upset," she said, as she made the decision after spending almost 30
   minutes on the bus to abandon it.

   "The orange line will take us all the way to the Wells Fargo Center,"
   another delegate on the bus explained, and Morelli decided to take the
   risk and find the train. Which meant getting to the right platform, and
   finding the right train, heading in the right direction.

   "I'm so mad," she said, though still efforting a smile.

   It should have been a ten-minute journey. It ultimately lasted two
   hours. By the time Morelli finally arrived and reunited with the Nevada
   delegation, the convention was already well underway.

   Sticking with Bernie

   "As soon as I got through the gates, there was an entire protest."
   Morelli added it may have explained the traffic that started the chain
   reaction that delayed her arrival.

   "Honestly, if I wasn't a delegate, I would have been one of those
   people out there," she said, because many of them were protesting in
   support of Bernie Sanders.

   She shrugged off the inconvenience. "I think we missed like two votes,
   but they weren't close."

   Angie Morelli says her dizzying first day of the Democratic National
   Convention was simply par for the course in her experience as a Bernie
   Sanders supporter.

   "The entire process of being involved in politics since I decided to
   get involved with Bernie has been a complete disaster, so this is all
   the more reason I think I should be here, I still got here 45 minutes
   before the shuttle."

   But she was still soaking in the moment on the floor of the convention
   at Wells Fargo Arena.

   "It's been pretty hectic, and overwhelming, and it's kind of strange to
   actually be here."

   But here she was, still supporting Bernie Sanders despite the obstacles
   in the way, and the reality that his chances of becoming the next
   President of the United States might have ended.

   Even so, she said she's still not sold on supporting Hillary Clinton,
   and she isn't sure she ever will.
     __________________________________________________________________

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   nvention/3436501.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/being-a-delegate-at-the-democratic-convention/3436501.html