I have been really interested in the primaries going on tonight in Iowa. As I get information about the polling results I will update my reactions to it tonight. It is funny how so much energy and time is spent on just 7 electoral votes coming out of Iowa but winning this state is big in the primaries because it sets the tone.

7:30PM Central Time - John Edwards is leading after 2 precincts reporting - Edwards 42%, Clinton 33%, Obama 25%. - Huckabee leading on the republican side at around 33% and Romney has around 25%.

All I can say is that if all the other states go to Edwards and he wins the nomination on the Democratic side…

7:49PM Central - Now how Stupid is this…I thought that it was just a straight vote like any other caucus but in Iowa these “cow-tippers” are living in the 1800’s…

Democratic way to vote in Iowa Caucus

When the Democratic caucuses begin at 7 p.m. CT sharp in school gymnasiums, libraries, churches, farm houses and other locations in the 1,781 precincts across the Hawkeye state, step one will be to stand up and be counted.

“What you’ll do is get up out of your seat and you’ll go walk to the corner or space by the wall designated for the candidate of your choice,” Chelsea Waliser, an organizer for Sen. Barack Obama, told potential caucus-goers during a recent Obama rehearsal caucus.

After this first step, party officials will determine if a candidate meets the 15 percent “threshold” requirement.

Supporters of candidates making up less than 15 percent of the vote in a particular precinct will have the option of making their vote count by voting in the second tally for a “viable” candidate — one who got at least 15 percent of the vote on the first tally.

It is particularly interesting to watch what happens between the first and second tallies at the Iowa Democratic caucuses, as viable candidate camps vie for the votes of the unviable. It’s one of the few times in American politics where voters directly interact with each other.

During the “persuasion” time in between tallies, the precinct captain for the viable candidates sends a person over to each group that failed to meet the threshold to convince them to support their candidate. Once everyone has decided where to vote, a second tally is taken, and the results are then sent to Democratic state party headquarters — not electronically but via ordinary mail.

The Iowa Democratic Party keeps the total vote tally a secret and only releases the percentage of delegates won by each candidate, so it all comes down to how many delegates each precinct has, not the popular vote.

Republican way to Vote in the Iowa Caucus

By comparison, the rules governing the 1,781 Republican caucuses, which are held on the same night as the Democratic caucuses, are pretty simple. The Republican caucuses will use a secret ballot, and, since there is no viability threshold, each vote is simply tallied and the number of votes each candidate gets is reported to party headquarters.

What are the Democrats doing out there. Article link

8:01PM - NBC News is saying that Obama has a slight lead on the Deomcratic side and Huckabee on the Republican side. The minister vs. the chosen one…yes sir. When I heard that Obama had the lead you already know how I was feeling (and I hate to tip my hand about who I’m supporting this year but you already know)…

8:19PM - NBC News is reporting that Huckabee is the winner in Iowa on the republican side. That is not bad for an old Baptist preacher that probably had a fraction of the money Romney has. I still credit his win to talk radio. Everytime I listen to one of the talk radio shows during the day it seems like they all favor Huckabee but Republican’s can only keep pulling the “Christian Card” for so long. Being a Christian myself, I don’t identify my faith with politics because neither party can represent Christian values when you look at them. But, I’m in the minority because most people who call themselves Christians vote Republican. (But I bet if you polled nothing but black Christians that wouldn’t be the case)

8:55PM - Everyone is reporting that Obama has taken Iowa but it is very close (37%, 30% Edwards, 30% Clinton). How crazy is it that Clinton looks to have come in third…I know Bill is probably thinking about how can we get the law changed so he can run for a third term. Anyway, I think Obama vs. Huckabee is what this country needs. Two different candidates who are nothing like Kerry/Bush. It is still early but 2008 is going to be interesting.

Posted by kdub under Politics |