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What is a caucus? <<Previous Because of the reform in 1968, caucuses and primaries have been in the forefront of the presidential nomination process. By 1980, primaries selected 71 percent of the delegates at the Democratic national convention.
John Haskell, associate professor of political science at Drake University, who is on sabbatical this semester in Washington D.C., says he sees many benefits to the Iowa caucuses' first-in-the-nation status. "The main benefit is that voters in a small state like Iowa, and New Hampshire, which is the first primary state, get a chance to evaluate the candidates carefully, often in person," Haskell said in an e-mail interview. "In the later primaries and caucuses, there is not the same chance ... candidates are running in several states at once and have little time to meet voters, and voters thus have little opportunity to evaluate the candidates seriously. There is less 'sound bite' politics in Iowa compared to bigger, more populated states." Sanders agreed: "Iowa helps set the field. Candidates who do very badly here in Iowa tend to be eliminated...It is useful to have a less expensive, smaller state. If a big state like California went first, money would be even more important than it already is." However, the current caucus system also has some drawbacks. "Iowa is not a representative state in terms of ethnicity, race, economics, or almost anything else. So an important decision as to who will be the next president is made in a state that is not representative at all of the country," Haskell said. "A bigger and far more diverse state such as Illinois usually has much less impact on the presidential nomination race. That doesn't seem to make much sense." Sanders said he sees a structural problem in the current caucus system. He said the national parties don't have much control over the caucuses, and he thinks parties should place stricter rules on the caucuses to eliminate the process of "front-loading." Many states are trying to gain political influence early on in the process by placing their caucuses and primaries farther away from the national conventions. This causes candidates to campaign in several states in a matter of weeks rather than spending a lot of time in a state for a more thorough evaluation. "Parties have to be willing to get into fights with state parties," Sander said. Sanders said he expects more advertising in the 2000 presidential nomination process. "Modern technology can be harnessed -- even in Iowa," he said. "We'll be inindated with (advertisments)." |
Story Index What is a Caucus? |