Iowa Democrats consider bringing back lead off caucuses, even if it means going 'rogue' in 2028
Just days before national Democrats gather for their annual summer meeting, Iowa's state party officials on Thursday said it was a mistake for the party to have abandoned Iowa in the 2024 early nominating calendar and opened up the possibility of going rogue the next time around.
In 2022, President Joe Biden ordered a shake-up of the 2024 election calendar, moving South Carolina’s primary ahead of contests in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. The move forced Iowa Democrats to ditch the five-decade, first-in-the-nation caucus where community members publicly signal their support for a candidate, a process that was plagued with problems in 2020.
The state party's criticism came with an open threat of defying the national party’s orders in 2028 as Iowa Democrats look to bring the once-competitive Midwestern state back on the radar of a party questioning its values, direction and future leaders.
“It was a big mistake in the Biden calendar to know that Iowa Republicans are going first here in this state and that, as Democrats, we sat and watched all this attention and the millions of dollars being spent in the state without those kinds of resources to push back on the Republican agenda," said Rita Hart, state party chair. “That did not help us here in Iowa and it did not help us long term for the national Democratic cause.”
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2025/08/21/iowa-democrats-may-bring-back-leadoff-caucuses-in-2028
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