Iowa's caucuses have traditionally kicked off the presidential primary season, but for Democrats in 2024, that won't be the case.
In a compromise with national party leaders, Iowa's Democratic Party said it will not release the results of its Jan. 15 in-person caucuses until March 5, Super Tuesday on the presidential primary calendar.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) removed Iowa's first-in-the-nation status earlier this year, reordering the primary schedule to make South Carolina first at the behest of President Joe Biden. The Republican Party still plans to have Iowa's caucuses kick off its primary schedule Jan. 15.
The plan also will allow Democrat voters to submit presidential preference cards in the mail instead of caucusing in person, Politico reported Friday. The final day to submit the cards by mail will be March 5, and the state party won't release the results of its mail-in caucus until then.
The Iowa Democratic Party released its plan Friday morning in a letter sent by party Chair Rita Hart to the DNC, the Des Moines Register reported. The committee was scheduled to meet Friday morning to discuss the proposal.
"We believe this delegate selection plan is a compromise and meets the requirements set forth by this committee, complies with Iowa law, and most importantly sets Iowa Democrats up to win in 2024," Hart wrote, according to the Register.
The DNC still hasn't resolved its issue with New Hampshire, which is required by state law to be the nation's first presidential primary. New Hampshire was granted an extension to mid-October to comply with the DNC's rules, Politico reported, but the DNC was set to discuss the state's plans at its Friday morning meeting.
New Hampshire Democrats have insisted they have no choice but to hold a primary set by New Hampshire's secretary of state, Republican David Scanlan, who has pledged to leapfrog any other states.
"I'll be reviewing this, and we'll see how the DNC reacts to it, and then at the appropriate time I'll set the date for the New Hampshire primary," said Scanlan, referring to Iowa's plan, according to the Register. "But I think this certainly goes a long way to protecting the traditional positions of the early nominating events of the Iowa caucuses followed by the New Hampshire primary."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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