© 2026 South Carolina Public Radio
Donate
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
SC Public Radio's statewide network is experiencing intermittent outages and programming issues due to ongoing infrastructure upgrades. Our team is working to keep these disruptions to a minimum and to resolve issues that do arise. Streaming on this site, the SCETV App, the NPR App, and smart speakers is unaffected.

What's A Delegate? And Why Do We Even Have Them In The First Place?

NPR
Published April 29, 2016 at 1:40 PM EDT
People vote at the Moose Lodge polling station, April 26, 2016 in White Plains, Maryland. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
People vote at the Moose Lodge polling station, April 26, 2016 in White Plains, Maryland. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

As the Republican nominating contest turns into a race for delegates and not just votes, some might ask why we even have delegates. Shouldn’t a popular vote suffice? Here & Now’s Robin Young speaks withRichard Pacelle, professor of political science at the University of Tennessee, to find some answers.

Guest

  • Richard Pacelle, professor of political science at the University of Tennessee.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.