Iowa Caucus History
The Iowa caucus has falsely claimed to be the first such caucus each year in the United States for a century. In fact, this was never the case, as delegate selection at the precinct level would begin in many states as early as two years prior to the quadrennial convention. In 1976, for example, both Alabama and Mississippi had their delegate selection process completed before Iowa’s caucus process had even begun.
It came to national attention in 1972, with a series of articles in the New York Times on how non-primary states would choose their delegates for the national conventions. For the record, the winner at the precinct level was front runner Edmund S. Muskie.
In 1976 an uncommitted slate received the most support, however, the headlines went to a formerly obscure Georgia governor Jimmy Carter, who, while coming in a distant second, won the most votes for any actual candidate. With no actual front runner at the time, Carter was able to use the publicity of his “win” to achieve victory in the New Hampshire primary, and then on to win his party’s nomination and eventually the presidency. Since then, presidential candidates have focused increasingly on achieving a win in Iowa.
Beginning in 1980, the Republicans began the tradition of holding a straw poll at their caucuses, giving the appearance of a primary election. George H. W. Bush campaigned extensively in Iowa, defeating Ronald Reagan, and briefly challenging the former California Governor’s lock on that year’s nomination.
While they have been a financial boon to the state, (the candidates have spent sometimes years campaigning) the political value of the Iowa caucuses has gone up and down over the years. In 1988, for example, the candidates who eventually won the nominations of both parties came in a poor third, and Walter Mondale in 1984, Bob Dole in 1996 and George W. Bush in 2000, all of whom went on to win the nomination, were badly beaten in New Hampshire.
The nadir of the caucuses was in 1992, when local Senator Tom Harkin ran for the Democratic nomination and none of the other candidates mounted campaigns in deference to him. President Bush was unopposed on the Republican side, and the media completely ignored the state.
While the Democrats have tried to preserve the priority of Iowa and New Hampshire in their schedules, the Republicans have not. Alaska and Hawaii generally have their caucuses before Iowa, and in 1988 the Hawaii victory of Pat Robertson and the 1996 Lousiana victory of Pat Buchanan over Sen.Phil Gramm had a significant impact on the results in Iowa.
The caucuses are an important factor in determining who remains in the race and who drops out. In the months leading up to the caucus, predictions showed candidates Dick Gephardt and Howard Dean neck-and-neck for first place, with John Kerry and John Edwards far behind them. Negative campaign ads attacking each other by the two front runners soured the voters on them, and a last minute decision by Kerry to put all his remaining money in Iowa, changed things around at the last minute. Gephardt’s presidential hopes were dashed and Dean’s badly battered, as Kerry went on to become the second non-incumbent to win both Iowa and New Hampshire since Edmond Muskie in 1972. (For further information on the 2004 Iowa caucus, see 2004 Iowa Democratic caucuses.)