Kaleb Poor
Staff Writer
Monday night, the nation’s attention descended on the state of Iowa as they cast the first votes in the presidential nomination process.
The caucuses were immediately marred by delays in reporting the outcome. The Iowa Democratic Party (IDP), which organized the event, has attributed the delays to “quality control” measures taken to ensure an accurate count.
It was widely reported that an app used by caucus leaders to relay precinct results was experiencing technical difficulties, but the IDP insisted in a press release that they had not been hacked.
“The integrity of the results is paramount,” IDP Communications Director Mandy McClure said in a Monday night release. “We have experienced a delay in the results due to quality checks and the IDP is reporting out three data sets for the first time. What we know right now is that 25% of precincts have reported, and early data indicates that turnout is on pace for 2016.”
The IDP did indeed make changes to their reporting process this year. Precincts were expected not only to report an outcome, but also the changes in voting as people moved from their first-choice candidate to the second choice, and so on.
While the IDP insisted their physical papertrail was sufficient to produce an accurate result, the long delay has raised widespread questions about the future of the caucuses.
Partial results were released Tuesday afternoon and continued to slowly drift in. As of Wednesday afternoon, only 75% of precincts had reported. The city of Des Moines, Iowa was among the precincts that had yet to report.
Early results showed strong support for Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders, who appeared to be vying for first place in a close contest. Buttigieg appeared to do well throughout the rural swaths of Iowa, pulling in 442 delegates (26.9%). Sanders thrived in urban areas and precincts containing colleges and universities, claiming 413 delegates (25.2%).
Elizabeth Warren claimed a respectable third-place turnout, retaining just over 18% of the partial delegate count. Notably, results show that Warren held greater support as Iowans first choice in the caucus, but failed to retain some of that support as caucusgoers modified their decision through the night.
Of significant noteworthiness was Joe Biden’s lackluster performance. While previous polling had shown Biden as the presumptive frontrunner with around 30% support, the partial caucus results showed the former vice president with just 15.2% of state delegate count.
While Iowans choices are still not fully known, the candidates have moved on to New Hampshire, their next stop on the campaign trail. With primary season underway, states with later-season votes are gearing up for their big days.
This includes Wyoming, which will hold Democratic caucuses on April 4. While Wyoming’s process differs significantly from Iowa’s, the Wyoming Democratic Party (WDP) has been watching the IDP closely.
“I don’t at all envy the position Iowa is in,” said Nina Hebert, communications director for the WDP. “They have somewhere around 1,700 precincts from which they have to collect information.. They naturally have a hard job from the get-go.”
Unlike Iowa, Wyoming collects information from just 23 counties. Nonetheless, Hebert stresses that caucusing effectively is a tremendous undertaking.
“I’m hesitant to pass judgement because we know firsthand how difficult it is to put on a caucus and the sheer amount of work that goes into that,” Hebert said. “We know the position that they’re in because we’re there as far as planning this caucus and putting it together.”
Wyoming’s caucusing process is also plainly different from Iowa’s in fundamental ways. For instance, Wyoming voters have an opportunity to vote by ballot for their preferred candidates as early as March 28.
Hebert stressed that people should register to vote before the registration deadline on March 20. Those who wish to participate in Wyoming’s Democratic caucuses must be registered with the Wyoming Secretary of State by that date.
The Wyoming GOP will not hold a caucus this year, though President Trump does have Republican challengers.
“It doesn’t appear as though [the Wyoming GOP] are going to remain neutral,” Hebert said. “Because if you’re not giving voters anything to weigh in on, it’s a pretty bold statement in and of itself.”
Information on voter registration can be found online through the Wyoming Secretary of State’s web page at soswy.state.wy.us.
