Atlanta could become the center of the political storm on Monday when a federal appeals panel hears a lawsuit that seeks to force the Democratic National Committee to seat all of Florida's delegates at the party's national convention in August.

The suit was filed in August in Tampa on behalf of Floridian Victor DiMaio. It claims the DNC violated his constitutional rights when it stripped Florida's Democratic Party of all 210 of its delegates to the convention as punishment for holding its Jan. 29 presidential primary earlier than DNC rules allow.

The suit was rejected at the district court level in Tampa, but the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta has agreed to hear the case.

DiMaio said Thursday in an interview that the appellate panel's decision to hear the case gives him hope.

"They've cleared the entire docket for the entire afternoon," DiMaio said. "They definitely want to hear our argument."

DiMaio said he supported former Sen. John Edwards and is neutral in the ongoing race for the nomination.