NPR: How the Iowa Caucuses Work

How the Iowa Caucuses Work

Remember, what happens tonight in Iowa is a caucus, not a primary. Thus, participants are not "voters." They are, well, caucus participants. Or caucus attendees. David Yepsen, Des Moines Register columnist, calls them "caucusgoers" ... athough other Register political reporters continue to call them "voters." But, at least on the Democratic side, they are not "voting." Got that?

A lot of questions also center on the words "viable" and "viability." This is more about Democrats. It will be easy to calculate how the Republican candidates do, since the GOP contest in Iowa is basically a "straw poll," where Republican caucusgoers simply show up at a caucus site and cast a presidential preference ballot.

For Democrats, it's showing up for hours at a time, discussing issues like Iraq and ethanol, and then, when it comes time to declare presidential preference, standing in part of the room along with like-minded people. But if a candidate in a precinct fails to attract the support of 15 percent of those attending (smaller precincts require a larger threshold), that candidate is not considered "viable."

Thus, that candidate's supporters have the option of joining up with another candidate, or simply going home. In any event, those final tallies are what the Democrats release, not the total number of folks who show up on behalf of each candidate.

-- Ken Rudin

4:09 PM ET | 01- 3-2008 | permalink

Comments

A news commentator on the BBC described the causcus system that the Democrats practise in Iowa as arcane and I agree with him.

It should be one person, one vote. That simple.

Sent by Dora Taylor | 4:22 PM ET | 01-03-2008

Yes, Doonesbury fans, the rumors are ture.

Ms. Joanie Caucus will be making the Iowa rounds tonight, autographing her classic graphic novel 'Dare to be Great, Ms. Caucus.'

fred camorra call

Summary :
From the publisher
Under most circumstances these days law board scores of 760 and impeccable feminist credentials might be expected to insure the swift acceptance of a candidate into law school. But when day-care director Joanie Caucus applies to a half-dozen top law schools, the best she can manage is inclusion on a couple of waiting lists. As the spring weeks drag by, the mails bring in one rejection slip after another, and Joanie is caught in an agonizing limbo???a circumstance shared by her creator, who for reasons of literary predeterminism was compelled to ignore the dozen real-life acceptances Joanie concurrently received from sympathizing law schools across the country. Happily, the final episodes of this new Doonesbury collection bring a last-minute reprieve, and the tenacious lady from Walden finds herself on her way to a new life and career.

Sent by fred camorra call | 4:24 PM ET | 01-03-2008

The first Democrat who admits that the past administration has made a huge mess of things and that it will take a lot of very big sacrifices from all of us to get back to where we need to be will get my vote. As a woman who was widowed a few years ago, I know what it's like to see financial resources drain away and still have to find a way to make my new life work (household income dropped to 25% of what it had been). Can this country find the resolve to cross that bridge, and who will lead us there? Many who still face these kinds of decisions in their own lives are waiting to see how it plays out on a national scale, which is no different in what's needed, but can affect us on even the international level. Some advice:

Drive less. Plan your trips, and combine errands. See how few fill-ups you can get things done on. Do you really need to go do that right now?

Why is that light on? Is it a CFL? Can you find a better light bulb? Can you use a CFL in another fixture, and use that one instead?

Is the TV plugged into a power strip that you can turn off when you're not watching TV? Okay, it takes a minute for the TV to come on, but why does that matter? Otherwise, it runs all the time, and you pay for that. For that matter, do you watch enough TV to even want one? Or two? Or . . . ?

Do you need all that stuff?

Do you need all that space?

Can you change this?

Maybe none of these questions seem important--yet. If not, I'll ask you again in 2012. The best of luck to those who don't think it's time--past time--to confront them.

Sent by Sharon Horton | 10:51 PM ET | 01-03-2008

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