Democratic caucus: 'Terrific field of candidates' brings out record crowds
By None
Election Logo 3
GateHouse News Service
Fri Jan 04, 2008, 12:15 AM CST
CHARLES CITY, Iowa -
John Edwards balloons, boxes of Hillary Clinton campaign buttons, dozens of Barack Obama signs and hundreds of people in sign-in lines made up the scene of what Iowa Democratic Party volunteers believe was the strongest caucus turnout ever in Iowa.
Volunteers toting T-shirts and boxes of brochures greeted crowds of caucus participants in Charles City, many of whom arrived and started to line up long before the sign-in process began.
Jim Erb, temporary chair of Charles City’s second precinct, said he thought the turnout at Thursday evening’s caucuses was better than in the past.
Caucuses across Iowa reported a record-setting 220,000 participants.
“We’ve still got a long way to go,” Erb said of the rate of caucus participation.
Jim Davis, chairman of the Floyd County Democrats, was pleased with the unusually high turnout.
“The turnout tonight has exceeded our expectations by far,” he said.
Davis said he believes “a whole lot of interest in a terrific field of candidates” accounted for the strong caucus attendance.
Volunteers at the Democratic caucus in Floyd reported attendance of about 130 people. Less than 50 people attended Floyd’s last presidential caucus.
Many of those at Charles City Middle School – the caucus site for several area precincts – had never been to a caucus before.
Participants ranged greatly in age. Emma Day came committed to supporting Hillary Clinton. An avid voter, Day voted in every presidential election since Theodore Roosevelt. Thursday night was her first caucus.
Another first-time caucus participant, Dustin Mottinger – a supporter of Clinton – waited in a sign-in line with his father Theodore Mottinger – a John Edwards supporter.
The father/son caucus-going duo debated the candidates at home, but both arrived on caucus night planning to stick with their own choices.
“I think Hillary will win, probably Obama second and Edwards, third,” (Dustin) Mottinger predicted before the caucus began. “I think it’s going to be close between Hillary and Obama.”
Mottinger’s prediction was right, at least for Floyd County. Clinton won the most support from Floyd County voters; however, Obama prevailed overall in Iowa.
Before the caucuses began, another Clinton supporter, Edmund Maschek, said he knew he wanted to support her before she even announced her candidacy for president.
“Two years ago, I decided on Hillary,” he said. “I decided before she even ran.”
Maschek believes a female president in the White House would affect positive change.
“I think it’s time to get a woman in office – in the BIG office,” Maschek said.
Maschek had only been to one other caucus before, and he said he thought the turnout was good.
Like Maschek, most of the caucus participants had already committed to a candidate before the event began.
Shirley Bunston, another Clinton supporter, said she received a flurry of calls from both the Democratic and Republican parties on caucus day. They didn’t sway her decision.
Bunston was also a first-time caucus participant.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “It was easy.”
Several new caucus participants shared Bunston’s sentiment about the event.
Fred Miller, of Charles City, had never been to a caucus.
“It was easy,” he said, adding he plans to participate in future caucuses.
Teamwork and cooperation among campaign and Democratic Party volunteers appeared to pay off. Representatives from each candidate’s campaign worked to make sure their supporters found the right place to sit, which was challenging in some precincts’ rooms at the middle school because people outnumbered available chairs. They also provided snacks and refreshments to create a more pleasant experience.
In the band/orchestra room – the caucus location for Precinct 4 – so many people attended that Precinct Chairman Frank Rottinghaus had to move all of the Clinton supporters into another room to make it easier for volunteers to count them.
About 150 to 250 people attended each precinct’s caucus.
Democratic Party Precinct Captain Karen Vanderlee was pleased with the turnout in her precinct.
“I’m just so proud of this town,” she said.
Caucus information and results are available at www.iowademocrats.org.
Charles City Press
Loading commenting interface...
Cresco, IA Yellow Pages
Find whatever you're looking for
with the Totally Local Yellow Pages:
with the Totally Local Yellow Pages:
Search provided by Premier Guide
Original content available for non-commercial use
under a Creative Commons license,
except where noted.
under a Creative Commons license,
except where noted.
Copyright © 2006–2008 GateHouse Media, Inc. Some Rights Reserved.
