Iowa Democrats have expressed mixed feelings after the Democratic National Committee changed the rules to make Iowa no longer the first state to hold its presidential caucuses.
The DNC moved earlier this year to swap Iowa’s calendar date for the upcoming 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries with South Carolina, a move that one longtime Democrat described as “painful to watch.”
De Moines Democrat MD Isley told The Hill that being the first state to vote on a nominee “is very important to many, many people. The loss of it on the Democratic side is very painful, and it’s painful to watch.”
Dennis Bowen, a Democrat and a student at Des Moines Area Community College, added that “It would be sad to see the Iowa caucus go away, however, I do support letting other states and more diverse places have their first pick at a presidential candidate.”
Isley also noted, “I do have concerns about appropriate representation of the population, so I do understand and personally support why there would be movement in a different direction outside of Iowa. I’m personally not bothered by it, but I do understand and empathize with others that are sorry to see it go.”
Ankeny resident Heather Plum, who said she regularly participates in the state’s Democratic caucus, said that “It’s really disappointing to see it go away because we really care about it, and it’s obviously a really good thing for our state with revenue and tourism as well.”
She added, “Iowa is very often considered a flyover state. We really are a hidden gem. That is the loss for me. It’s a spotlight on Iowa.”
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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