by Rick Pearson
DES MOINES - It looks like the nation's Democratic presidential contenders will be joining their Republican rivals in celebrating the new year in Iowa.
Iowa Democratic leaders voted Sunday night to adopt Jan. 3 as their presidential caucus date, a date previously settled on by the state's Republicans, in trying to establish Iowa's traditional first-in-the-nation caucus status.
The move puts greater focus on New Hampshire, where Secretary of State Bill Gardner will decide the date for the Granite State's first-in-the-nation primary.
Gardner has said he would announce the New Hampshire date in early November and has left open the possibility of casting primary ballots in December. Iowa's Democratic leaders, including Gov. Chet Culver, had firmly rejected any efforts to move Iowa's caucuses into 2007.
"It's a lot about retaining the tradition and maintaining our first-in-the-nation caucuses," said Scott Brennan, the Iowa Democratic chairman, after Sunday's vote. "The campaigns have invested so much in having Iowa as the first in the nation."
See the rest of the story in today's Tribune:
The Jan. 3 caucus may lead to campaigning over the holiday season, a break from tradition.
Candidates have found schedules and strategy in flux as states advance primaries before Feb. 5 to try to gain a greater role in selecting a nominee.
Already, Democrats at the national level have warned several states that jumped ahead of the Feb. 5 date that they will lose all of their convention delegates while Republican leaders have said they will disqualify half of the disputed states' convention delegates. Those moves have prompted federal court challenges.
Since Iowa's caucuses do not directly select delegates, the state has not been subject to national party prohibitions.
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Comments
This is ridiculous! Primary season MUST change. And for states to continually jockeying around to be first and earliest is out of hand.
Posted by: John D | October 29, 2007 10:43 AM
John:
I agree - but how do you stop it?
When the Democrats told that to Florida, the Republicans gleefully sent out a press release saying how terrible it was for the Democrats to do that to Florida.
It's all about the campaign money - the earlier the primary, the more money you get in your state.
Posted by: BobinATL | October 29, 2007 11:44 AM
It is a lot about money and that Iowa and NH want to be first all the time, and of course, those states and their media love the revenue and attention they get.
The only way it'll ever change is if the two parties come together and decide changes must be made together. And horses can fly, butterflies can talk, the mainstream media can be fair and balanced, and Loony Lefties can develop a clue!!!!
Posted by: John D | October 29, 2007 12:36 PM
Scheduling the caucuses on the day after school resumes in Iowa is faulty planning. Why? Because thousands of parents will have been vacation traveling for the weeks ahead of the caucuses and therefore out of touch with the critical pre-caucus advertising and promotions. Other people have their minds elsewhere during the busy party-time Christmas-New Years break. Who are the geniuses who scheduled this thing?
Posted by: Duke | October 29, 2007 1:57 PM
Hopefully this will make the Iowa Caucuses completely irrelevant.
Hey, perhaps they can schedule a caucus in February 08, for the '12 election, hey?
I read recently that some important legislation, and I can't remember what, could not be dealt with this year because it was too hot a topic for an election year. (!?!)
We are so screwed.
Posted by: C.Morris | October 29, 2007 6:34 PM
Other than regular furnace filter changes, this may be the only thing John D. and I agree on.
Posted by: C.Morris | October 29, 2007 6:59 PM