Bernie Sanders Gets His Say on Democratic Platform: 3 Things to Know

In an attempt to quell charges of election-rigging and to bring unity to the party, Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz has agreed to let Bernie Sanders choose one-third of the members of the committee that will draft the party platform this year. While Wasserman-Schultz could, under the rules, choose all 15 members of the drafting committee, she has agreed to let Hillary Clinton choose six and Bernie Sanders to choose five, leaving herself four slots to fill.

Here are three things you need to know.

It’s not all that unusual for a runner-up to get some say in the process.

"The norm here, and it has been for some time, is that the candidates and their campaigns discuss how to handle all these issues, whether it's the platform or rules or anything else," said Democratic strategist Bill Carrick, who has worked on several campaigns since 1980.

Even after acrimonious campaigns, nominees make platform concessions to their opponents, he said. "And that's been true of every presidential campaign I've ever known anything about."

So, while the rules allowed Wasserman-Schultz to keep all the power for herself, granting Sanders some say is hardly an unprecedented concession.

Even as Sanders’ campaign fades away, key parts of his campaign message will end up in the platform.

Hillary Clinton hasn’t embraced a $15-an-hour minimum wage across the country, but it could end up in the platform. Dr. Cornel West, a scholar of race relations and economic justice activist whom Sanders named to the committee, will certainly push for it -- along with Rep. Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress and the second member of Congress to endorse Sanders.

While single payer health care and free college tuition may not end up in the platform, there may be some language pushing in that direction.

By appointing pro-Palestinian activist James Zogby, Sanders has signaled his desire to shake up the Democratic party’s position on Israel. His choice of Bill McKibben, the author of 15 books about environmental crisis and the founder of the climate group 350.org, shows that Sanders will try to push the party on climate change. Native American activist Deborah Parker’s presence on the committee will bring attention to issues of tribal sovereignty, healthcare for native communities, and the racism that native people face.

Expect Sanders’ surrogates on the committee to take aim at the electoral machinery itself. Superdelegates, changes to the primary system, and an attempt to get big money out of politics are all fair game.

Sanders can dial his campaign back now.

With power over the platform, Sanders can continue his “political revolution” and keep pushing the party to the left, even if he tones down his (by now, quixotic) attempt to capture the nomination.

As recently as Friday, Sanders has been fighting hard to keep his path to the nomination open by suing to keep voter registration open in California until the day of that state’s election.

Despite pressure from pundits and party officials to drop out of the race, Sanders has pledged to stay in until the end, and he probably will -- but with a softer tone and more overtures to party unity.

Knowing he will have a say in charting the party’s positions in the future is a satisfying consolation prize. And more importantly, the agreement on the makeup of the committee may signal a lasting peace both with Clinton and with Wasserman-Schultz, whom Sanders and his supporters have accused of rigging the election.

Photos: Sanders' picks for the platform committee: Keith Ellison, Deborah Parker, Bill McKibben, Cornel West, James Zogby.