The American presidential election (2)
Tomorrow, after months and months of campaigning, the the Democratic and Republican hopefuls for the US Presidency face their first vote in the primary race – except that the vote in Iowa tomorrow is not a primary but a caucus. Iowans will gather to discuss and vote in meetings in schools, churches, or public libraries in each of the 1784 precincts.
Virtually nobody outside the United States – and not that many in the USA – understand the complex procedures of the Iowa caucus. A summary from one site is as follows:
“On caucus night, Iowans gather by party preference to elect delegates to the 99 county conventions.
Presidential preference on the Republican side is done with a straw vote of those attending the caucus. This vote is sometimes done by a show of hands or by dividing themselves into groups according to candidate. In precincts that elect only 1 delegate they choose the delegate by majority vote and it must be a paper ballot.
Democratic candidates must receive at least 15 percent of the votes in that precinct to move on to the county convention. If a candidate receives less than 15 percent of the votes, supporters of non-viable candidates have the option to join a viable candidate group, join another non-viable candidate group to become viable, join other groups to form an uncommitted group or chose to go nowhere and not be counted. Non-viable groups have up to 30 minutes to realign, if they fail to do so in that time, they can ask the for more time, which is voted on by the caucus as a whole. If the caucus refuses, re-alignment is done and delegates are awarded. “
A fuller explanation is to be found on the Wikipedia site here.
The vote in Iowa could have a decisive impact on the fate of many of the candidates. There are eight Democratic runners and seven Republican contenders. After Iowa, there will be fewer and, even those who survive, could have their future prospects powerfully shaped by the result.
Although superficially democratic, the Iowa caucus puts considerable electoral power in hands of comparatively few voters in a very unrepresentative state. It is overwhelmingly white in a country where ethnic minorities are growing. It is a rural place whereas most Americans live in cities. It is a state where Republican religious conservatives make up some 40 per cent of the vote.