DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - As the Democratic presidential primary race is nearing one candidate, expect to hear the word "delegates" more often.

It is not a prize for candidates to win, but it is all part of the voting and election process. When casting a ballot, one has a choice to vote for their Democratic or Republican primary candidate. Then voters have the option of picking delegates who will go to the national nominating convention. 

Delegates are active members of their respected party, elected officials or regular citizens. They have to be registered voters, at least 18 years old and live in the state or district they represent. Rep, Sue Scherer is one of the delegates who pledged to vote for former vice president Joe Biden. 

"It was a lot of work, I won't deny that," Scherer said. 

This is her first time being a delegate for the 2020 primaries. The representative said he had to earn 500 signatures on a petition to become a delegate. Mary Morrissey, the executive director of the Illinois Democratic Party, added how the presidential candidate also has to approve who wants to be their delegate. 

"A candidate would want to be sure that someone's not a trojan horse; meaning they're not getting on the ballot as a delegate for Biden and then they go to convention and vote for another candidate," Morrissey explained. 

When the race doesn't show a clear nominee, it is the delegates who decide who represents the party in the general election. Biden easily won Illinois over Senator Bernie Sanders. 

A Democratic candidate needs 1,990 delegates for the Democratic party nomination, while President Donald Trump needs 1,273 for the Republican party nomination.