Iowans give Obama edge in 2008 election

By Gloria Aleff
Iowa.com

Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucus helped give Barack Obama the momentum he needed to win the presidency/AP photo, Rick Bowmer

Rooms were packed to the brim with a line out the door at the 2008 Iowa caucuses. Presidential candidates had spent tens of millions of dollars on local television advertisements and hundreds of paid staff in dozens of field offices.

Voting started at 7 p.m. Jan. 3. By midnight, Barack Obama was declared the Democratic winner, followed by John Edwards and Hillary Clinton. Mike Huckabee won the Republican process followed by Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson and John McCain.

With the eyes on Iowa caucuses, political activists were stunned. Obama wasn’t expected to win. The Iowa caucuses recorded a record turn out in the Democrat party. The party said there were at least 227,000 caucus attendees, compared to 124,000 in 2004. The Iowa GOP projected 120,000 people took part in this year’s Republican causes.

Since 1972, the Iowa caucuses have been the first major electoral event of the nominating process for both the Democratic and Republican candidate for President of the Unites States. The Iowa caucuses operate very differently from the more common primary election used by other states.

The caucuses are generally defined as “gathering of neighbors”. Rather than going to polls and casting ballots, Iowans gather at a set location in each of Iowa’s 1,784 precincts. The caucuses are held every two years, but it is the presidential preference causes held every four years that brings national attention to Iowa.

The White House hopefuls campaigned down to the wire in Iowa determined to reach as many people as possible before the causes started three days into the New Year.

Iowa Democrats, unlike Republicans, use a more complicated system to determine a candidate’s viability. Republican caucus-goes are asked for their support for a candidate only one time during the event. Democrats are asked twice; an initial question of support and a second if their first-choice candidate does not reach a 15 percent threshold to achieve viability

When Democratic candidate Obama, accepted his party’s nomination in Denver in August, he said, “Thank you Iowa. It all began with your vote.”

McCain became the Republican presidential nominee in March, but didn’t campaign in Iowa in January -almost ignoring the Iowa caucuses. Hillary Clinton argued during the presidential debates that caucuses don’t count -only primary elections do. Don’t tell that to Obama or the thousands who voted during the Iowa caucuses.

Learn more

• Iowa Caucus 2008
• Iowa Secretary of State election information
• Iowa elected officials
• Map of congressional districts

Iowa’s political parties

• Iowa Democratic Party
• Republican Party of Iowa
• Iowa Constitution Party
• Iowa Green Party
• Libertarian Party of Iowa