Okay folks, let's review Monday's Caucus process...

[brooklynite]

There will be a Caucus in each voting precinct. Doors will open for registration at 6 PM Central (there was an online registration process to help sped things up). Voters can register on the spot; Republicans and a Independents can change registration. The total attendance will be used to calculate the 15% viability threshold (in some smaller

The Caucuses start at 7 PM. (Anyone on line waiting to register will be allowed to participate) A critical point is that this is an actual Party meeting, not just a vote, so there will be procedural and other steps taking place at the beginning. Eventually, participants will move to the voting phase.

A representative of each campaign (including “no preference”) will have an opportunity to make a short speech in support of their candidates. Voters will then publicly assemble in different parts of the room to be counted (voters will also sign a form for the candidate of their choice to improve record-keeping). Any candidates with at least 15% viability will receive delegates to the COUNTY Caucus. Other candidates will be declared “non-viable”.
.
Now the real fun begins. Supporters of non-viable candidates have an opportunity to vote again. For 30 min or so, viable candidate supporters will attempt to encourage them to join their campaign, to increase their candidates’ numbers. Conversely, non viable campaigns may attempt to poach or “borrow” unneeded supporters of a viable campaign to hit the viability threshold. (Example: Biden is viable, but has three more supporters than needed for his three allocated delegates. Those three supporters could go over to Klobuchar who is currently non-viable.) Or, the supporters of non-viable candidates could band together as a viable “uncommitted” group.

Finally, there’s a second round of voting, and the Caucus’s delegateS are assigned to each campaign, which appoints people among their supporters to represent them at the County Caucus.

The Caucus leaders will then report THREE numbers to the State Party, which will publicly report:
The STATEWIDE raw vote for all candidates in the first round
The STATEWIDE final vote for all VIABLE candidates in the second round
The Estimated Delegate Totals for the State Caucus in June which will allocate Statewide Convention Delegates (additional Convention Delegates will be appointed at Congressional District Caucuses in April). It should be noted that the estimated SDE’s may be inaccurate, since some candidates dropout before the Congressional District and State Caucuses.

Most Caucuses will take 1-2 hours, so result will start coming in around 10:30-11 Eastern.

[dsc]

1. actually I am pretty sure the whole extra voter thing isn't permitted this year

[judeling]

3. If a candidate is viable in the first count his supporters may not move.

That is a new feature as is only one reallocation round.

[OneMoreCupOfCoffee]

4. As I understand it supporters of non-viable candidates get a second chance,

but supporters of viable candidates are locked into their choices.

[dsc]

9. that was my understanding

[OneMoreCupOfCoffee]

2. I thought that supporters of viable candidates could not be "poached"

under Iowa's 2020 rules.

So a Biden (for example) delegate could not peel off to (say) Kloubuchar after the first vote were she not viable.

Are you sure you have this right?

[brooklynite]

5. I've heard otherwise...

[OneMoreCupOfCoffee]

8. I would double check your sources.

[madaboutharry]

6. It was my understanding that if your

candidate is viable you can’t change,

[DURHAM D]

7. I hate caucuses.

I also hate same day party change. jftr - You only need to change parties for the duration of the meeting. How can this be fair? IT CAN'T.

At my caucus in 2016 there were almost as many people changing to Dem as there were registered Democrats.

Party changers were about 90% male. Most were 30-40 pounds overweight and stuffed into a t-shirt three sizes to small. The cargo pants and compression socks almost rounded off their attire except that about half of them had guns strapped around their over-sized waists. They thought this party change thing was funny and several had voted earlier at the Republican caucus.

This year they won't need to vote in two places in one day given that the Republicans won't be having a caucus because Trump will be unopposed.

Note: People (mostly women) with children left before the vote as they were afraid of all the guns and the children were being bullied by guess who.

[dsc]

10. wow I guess we fat people just suck

[DURHAM D]

11. The outfits are really designed to show their guns better. nt

[Sucha NastyWoman]

12. No, just fat Trumpsters.

Everyone knows overweight Democrats are good people.

[bottomofthehill]

13. Agreed, and I am an old fat white guy

Caucuses are just plain non-democratic. They not only allow bullying, they promote it. No secret ballot, no privacy, limited time to vote, no ability to absentee, it’s just a bad process.

Polls should be open from 6 am to 8 pm giving people the best chance to get to vote regardless of their work hours. Ballots should be secret so people can not be coerced into voting by bosses, ministers, bullies, people in power over their lives.

They are awful

[musicblind]

15. This stuff is so complicated compared to just voting.

I'm more in favor of primaries, personally.