Alaska's Sanders supporters split in nomination night fight at the DNC

PHILADELPHIA — Alaska supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders were divided in reaction to the vote that handed Hillary Clinton the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday night, and some opted not to sit by and watch it happen.

At the close of the states' roll call vote Tuesday, hundreds of Sanders supporters quietly rose from their seats and exited the convention building. From there, they headed to the media pavilions outside — massive temporary "tent" structures fronted by glass panels — to engage in an act of quiet but pointed protest. Many taped their mouths to symbolize what they felt was a silencing and disenfranchisement by the Democratic National Committee.

According to a press release from the Coalition of 57, Alaska delegate Jill Yordy, who previously worked on the Sanders campaign, was one of the protest organizers. Yordy said the walkout was not organized by the campaign, but a "grass-roots" effort.

[Photos: Sanders supporters protest at Democratic National Convention]

The effort came in the wake of DNC chairman Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigning Sunday after WikiLeaks released 20,000 pages of emails that hackers pulled from the organization. Many felt the documents showed a systematic bias by party operatives toward Clinton.

Alaskans present said that the protest was organized via a variety of means — by text, on Facebook and through other messaging applications — and that they found out about it during the roll call of the states.

Not all Sanders supporters made it into the media center before police barred the door, creating a two-part stand-off, with plenty of media access on both sides of the glass wall.

Some of Alaska's Sanders supporters — both delegates and alternates — joined others in an effort to pull attention away from the convention continuing inside by capturing members of the media where many were working.

Police officers quickly closed in on the building, but, like the protesters, remained quiet. The police stood in rows blocking many exits, as press and protesters found themselves suddenly closed in — or out.

Some Alaskans came to express solidarity with their fellow "Berniecrats" and to show support for their preferred candidate.

At least a half-dozen Alaskans joined the event — not all, but at least half of the state's 14 Sanders delegates.

"I'm so proud of him — of what he's done, the odds he's against. And yeah, I don't think it was a totally fair election. And I understand that's the world. But something like this helps push that message forward so next time, things will be fair," said Alaska delegate Taz Tally at the start of the effort.

Tally said he felt that the superdelegate system stacked the deck against Sanders, as many of the hundreds of superdelegates committed to her candidacy long before the primaries even began.

Tally did return to the convention center later that evening.

But many did not, as the evening stretched on and the convention programming continued on stage. Alaska's seats on the floor did not remain entirely empty. Alternates and guests, including spouses and friends of the remaining delegation members filled the spots — excited for a better view of a star-studded event that unfolded on stage and network television. It was unclear whether the protesting delegates would return to the convention hall Wednesday.

Former President Bill Clinton delivered a detailed endorsement of his wife Tuesday night after she officially secured the Democratic party's nomination for president. And unlike Monday's speeches, when rowdy and disappointed Sanders supporters regularly chanted and booed through speeches, Clinton had a fully receptive audience.

Singer Alicia Keys gave a shout out to the "Bernie" fans in the crowd, but the response was taciturn compared to the volume and enthusiasm that the group had brought to the convention thus far.

That's because throughout the convention hall, those that weren't on board with Hillary Clinton left after she clinched the nomination, and for the most part, they didn't come back.

"Tonight has been about 'stronger together,' " actress Elizabeth Banks said at the close of the night's session. Actress Meryl Streep advocated "grit and grace" that brought Clinton to be the first woman nominated to president by a major political party in the United States.

Alaska Democrats voted 82 percent for Sanders, and many of the delegates are either struggling or refusing to adjust to Sanders' new message this week: Vote for Hillary Clinton on November 8.

The state's Democratic Party chairman Casey Steinau announced Alaska's votes when the state, alphabetically, came second on Tuesday: six for presumed nominee Hillary Clinton and 14 for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Thirteen delegates were bound to Sanders and three to Clinton. The state's four superdelegates split, three for Clinton and one for Sanders.

Delegate Edward Alexander, from Fort Yukon, left his convention seat during the protest and stood near the media tent while the brief sit-in was underway.

"I think protests are important," Alexander said. Any kind of protest that's about strengthening democracy and strengthening the ability of people to vote and for their votes to be counted accurately … I think is extremely important to a healthy system."

Party unity is less important than focusing on improvement, Alexander said.

Sanders delegate Larry Murakami, the state party's vice chair, did not join the protest.

"I am a Bernie supporter, but he told me what to do," Murakami said, referring to Sanders' repeated pleas to supporters over the last two days to support Clinton and join together to support the Democratic party in opposition to Republican nominee Donald Trump. "That's what I try and tell them," he said of the protesting Sanders supporters. But Murakami noted that some newer members of the party may not trust him too much with their protest plans, as a more long-standing member and office-holder of the state's party.

Clinton delegate TK Kleiner said that while quite a few delegates left, all the Clinton delegates stayed seated.

"I was very sad for them," Kleiner said, noting that she felt that the delegates missed out on "a moment in history that is never going to happen again — the first woman nominated for president."

And she disagreed with their premise.

"Hillary Clinton didn't win on superdelegates," Kleiner said. "If we removed all the superdelegates, she won anyway. She won by millions of votes, and she won by hundreds of delegate votes."

And Kleiner noted — the superdelegate system "has been in place for a long time. That's the system. Bernie Sanders entered into this wanting to run as a Democrat to take advantage of what the party could offer him. And part of that was the superdelegate system. And he knew that. If you want to change a system, you change it beforehand, or you raise your hand and complain beforehand. You don't do it midstream."

This article has been edited for clarity.