Iowa Caucuses

http://www.twincities.com/ci_7747046?source=rss&nclick_check=1

To read more about what is happening in the Iowa election click on the link above: this note about who can and cannot participate.

THE IOWA CAUCUSES

Who: Anyone, whether registered as voters or not, can attend the Iowa caucuses as long as they'll be 18 by Election Day 2008. Attendees can register on caucus night.

When: The caucuses - since 1972 the first major electoral event of the presidential-nominating process - will be held the evening of Jan. 3.

How: Voters and future voters must be in their Democratic or Republican caucus location, which can be a church, school, someone's home or elsewhere, by 7 p.m. Jan. 3. The attendees will be asked to choose a presidential candidate - through a straw poll for Republicans and a variety of means for Democrats, including sometimes standing in a certain area to be counted.

What's next: For Republicans, the straw poll results will be counted and used to send delegates to the state nominating convention.

For Democrats, the results are counted at the caucus to determine whether candidates meet certain viability thresholds - at smaller caucuses the threshold is 25 percent, at larger ones it's 15 percent. If some preferences are considered not viable, voters will be given the chance to pick again. Once viable selections are made, the results will be used to select delegates to county nominating conventions.

The delegates are not bound by the caucus results but tend to stick with the candidate picks that won them selection.

Why it matters: While a presidential candidate can win party nomination without winning Iowa and lose it after winning Iowa, the early support gives candidates important momentum to continue.

Vote for Barack Obama -- for clarity insight reality and on top of the ISSUES. Got to www.BaraclObama.com to learn more.