Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the outgoing Democratic National Chairwoman, has announced that she will not open the convention this afternoon. “I have decided that in the interest of making sure that we can start the Democratic convention on a high note that I am not going to gavel in the convention,” Wasserman Schultz told the Sun-Sentinel this afternoon.
The DNC’s secretary, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, will replace Wasserman-Schultz during the opening proceedings, gaveling the convention to order at 4 p.m. It’s still unclear if Wassserman -Schultz will appear later in the convention or not at all.
Wasserman Schultz’s decision follows a rough morning, when delegates from her own home state of Florida heckled her, booing and chanting “shame.” Last week, Wikileaks published nearly 20,000 emails from the DNC. Among the cringe-worthy revelations: The committee had acted to help Hillary Clinton and undermine Bernie Sanders.
Wasserman Schultz announced Friday that she would resign as chair of the DNC, effective immediately after the convention. The Wikileaks debacle, as well as Wasserman Schultz’s role in it, have deepened rifts within the Democratic Party between supporters of Clinton and supporters of Sanders, who believe that primaries were rigged against their candidate.