Political Machine's Guide to Superdelegates

We here at the Machine have already published a handy explanation of the Who, What, How, and Why of the Superdelegates, helpfully re-purposed after the jump, and now, someone else has taken care of the "Where?" From Passport:

Rick Klau, an employee at Google, took on a personal project to help clarify things. He set up SuperDelegates.org, a wiki-style Web site that not only tells you how the Democratic Party's superdelegate system was developed, but also lists who all 795 of them are and whether or not they've pledged their vote to Clinton or Obama. Even cooler, Klau has done an overlay on Google Maps, so you can see where they're from and whether they're still undecided or are leaning toward one of the candidates. Check it out here.

Keep in mind, with the possible exception of Ted Kennedy, the Superdelegates cannot actually be seen from space.

As visitors to the site can see, there is a long list of uncommitted Superdelegates. If the race remains tight after March 4, the pressure on Superdelegates to make up, or change, their minds will increase, with most people wanting the Supers to follow the wishes of their state's voters. After the jump, a brief, but thorough, explanation of Superdelegates.

With the Democratic Presidential Primary race so closely knotted, there has been a lot of talk about so-called "Superdelegates." Faster than an '89 Yugo, more powerful than a thousand voters, able to leap public opinion in a single bound, these "Wonks of Steel" will wield great power come August and the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

What is the mysterious secret of their origins? The Political Machine has the answers, with a little help from Wikipedia. No, they weren't rocketed here from some distant, doomed planet. There are a few different ways to become a "Superdelegate", but it really amounts to something like an alumni association, the purpose of which is to act as a firewall against a crazy electorate, and to retain some party control in a fragmented election. The Washington Post has the complete list of Democratic Super Delegates.

Also called PLEO ("unpledged party leader and elected official delegates") delegates, the Super Delegates are a collection of current Democratic elected officials and party leaders, the composition and selection of which vary by state. But there are also automatic Super Delegates, people who are accorded the status by the National Party rules. These are: All current Democratic members of Congress, governors, DNC members, all former Democratic Presidents, Vice Presidents, Leaders of the U.S. Senate, Speakers of the U.S. House of Representatives and Democratic Minority Leaders, as applicable, and all former Chairs of the Democratic National Committee.

So, there you have it, the mighty Super Delegates. There are only two forms of kryptonite for the "Supes"; If one of them endorses another party's candidate, he loses his Super Delegate status. (Sorry, Joe Lieberman). The other is the ire of primary voters, if their choice is overturned by the Supers. With great power comes great responsibility.