It’s the time every four years when each and every presidential candidate’s campaign is on the line. But for what? The answer is the infamous Iowa Caucus.
But what is the Iowa Caucus and why is it important? As cheesy as it may sound, Iowa is the first state in the country to say who they want the Democratic and Republican Party nominee to be. Whomever comes out on top in Iowa for the Democrats and the Republicans sends a major message to the whole country, especially to New Hampshire and Nevada.
With that being said, candidates like Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and many others are campaigning more than ever in the Hawkeye State. But for what reason? Well voting starts on Feb. 1. That’s right people, Feb.1. That’s less than two weeks away. This is the time that can make or break a candidate’s presidential run due to the voice of the people. It all comes down to if he/she is liked by the American people or not.
Typically presidential candidates spend about two years building their campaign, gaining monthly donors, and work especially hard to gain daily volunteers, and a support system slowly starts to show for a candidate. If a candidate does that part of their campaign right, then the next obstacle they have to face are the debates, describing their solutions to America’s problems and hopefully are honest to the American People. Do all candidates follow this guideline? No. A perfect example of this would be in the 2008 Presidential Election when things did not go as planned for a presidential candidate who looked like she would win the nomination.
In 2008, Clinton was running for president- and yes she is going for round two this year. She spent at least a couple months in advance preparing for the Iowa Caucus. She gained more supporters, and according to an American Res. Group poll on Dec. 20, 2007, Clinton had a 34 percent lead over her rival Barack Obama, who had 19 percent.
The tables soon turned for Clinton as Obama beat her in the Iowa Caucus overall with a 37.5 percent lead over a 29.4 percent for Clinton.
So as you can see, the Iowa Caucus can make or break a presidential run. The American people saw what happened in Iowa in 2008, and soon Obama’s message had more meaning than Clinton’s and he was able to win more states such as Nebraska, Nevada, and South Carolina.
This leads to how every state is important. The big focus right now for the Republican Party is between Trump and Cruz. According to Real Clear Politics, the poll numbers lie in Trump’s favor: 29 percent to Trump and 26.4 percent to Cruz.
The next big focus point for the Democratic Party is between Clinton and Sanders. All eyes are on Hillary Clinton this time around because of a special interest. That is, will she be defeated again? According to Real Clear Politics the numbers are extremely close between Sanders and Clinton. 46.5 percent to Clinton, 43.4 to Sanders.
This is huge.
Now if you take a look across Iowa, the Iowans are something else this time every four years, and I mean it when I say it. The Iowans will go through thick and thin to spread the word about whom they support for president. No matter how hard it snows, you can always count on the Iowans to be able to still manage to hand out a ‘Commit to Caucus’ card.
I believe that Iowa truly shows the voice of the country on Feb 1. It is a first real look to see who the people support. With that being said, no matter who wins the Iowa Caucus for the Democrats or the Republicans, New Hampshire is the next state to choose who they want to vote for, and on March. 15, it is our turn here in Illinois.
It is crazy to think that the 2016 Presidential Election is almost in full swing. But it will only be a matter of time before all the caucuses are over, the nominees for each party are chosen, and soon we will have the 45th President of the United States.
As the Iowans say, ‘It all starts in Iowa.’