It may have taken a few extra days, but late last week, the Iowa Democratic Party released the results of the February 3 caucus. On the state level, with the slightest of leads, Pete Buttigieg appeared to come out on top with 26.2% of the total, barely edging out Senator Bernie Sanders with 26.1%. As of Monday, the Iowa Democratic Party’s (IDP) estimates stated Buttigieg received 14 national convention delegates, while Sanders received 12 (out of the state’s possible 49). Trailing the two frontrunners were Elizabeth Warren with eight delegates, Joe Biden with six and Amy Klobuchar with one. Sanders did come out on top in the second alignment count however, which is essentially the popular vote.
At a county level, the state released results that were clearer cut. Buttigieg handily won Wright County with 35.5% or 213 people caucusing for him. Tied for second was Senator Amy Klobuchar and Sanders. Klobuchar, perhaps benefitting from her visit to the county, had 20% of the caucus or 120 people, which was the same as Sanders. Former Vice President Joe Biden was close to that total with 107 caucusing for him, getting 17.8%. Further down the line were Elizabeth Warren with 4.5% of the vote and Michael Bloomberg with 2.17%.
Even a week after the caucus, the overall state results are still being questioned. The campaigns had until Monday of this week to ask for a recanvass to audit the results. Both Buttigieg and Sanders have asked for a select few precincts to be recanvassed, 85 in all (out of around 1,700). The IDP stated they will conduct that recanvass within a couple of days. The Sanders campaign has acknowledged that if results in those precincts end up going his way, he wouldn’t overtake Buttigieg for delegates, but they believe Sanders could end up earning one more.
In the end, most candidates ended up criticizing the caucus process and the IDP, with several political pundits calling for an end to the caucuses entirely, citing the fact that Iowa’s mostly white electorate is not representative of the whole nation.
Local officials who helped run the event last Monday night also had mixed feelings about it. Wright County Democratic Party Acting Chair Shannon Walker affirmed that she thinks the caucus is very important for the state and should not be abandoned, but she does hope for some changes. She said, “The process is entirely too complicated. It needs to be streamlined. People don’t want to be in a room for two or more hours trying to figure everything out.”
Mandi Rink, who acted as the chairperson for the rural Clarion precinct, agreed. The changes the Iowa Democratic Party made to the process, requiring three sets of data and up to two alignments of voters, was not the easiest to act out in the moment. Rink stressed, “The new system had people very confused.”
Reporting the results was also difficult even when local precinct officials had gathered their numbers. The smartphone app the party planned to use largely failed, leaving precincts to have to call in on a hotline that was not prepared for the phone traffic. Walker said she was on hold for around an hour and a half in all. Rink got through on the hotline quicker than that but said it was hard to hear the operator once she talked to an actual person. “I ended up calling back that next morning to make sure they got all the information recorded correctly,” she added. Walker also noted that one of the Eagle Grove precinct chairs was even working on reporting her results until 3 a.m. the next morning.
Despite the hiccups in the process, the officials were happy with the efforts they saw in the county. Becky Egland, who acted as chair for the Clarion town precinct, said she was pleased with overall turnout and how everyone participated. “Yes, there were a few bumps, but everyone was patient and we got things done,” she asserted. She also said that she appreciates all the volunteers that helped. “It’s a new process but I’m really happy with everyone that pitched in.”
Time will tell what changes are in store for Iowa, the caucus and the Democratic Party, but all local officials agreed that they hope Iowa retains the caucuses. Rink emphasized, “Of course, the process could be improved, but it’s great for Iowa and voters. It’s important for people to exercise their democratic rights.”
