The day is finally here: The Iowa Caucuses.
For those who don’t know, the Iowa Caucuses are local meetings that will be taking place throughout the state tonight at 7PM (Central Standard Time). Families, friends, neighbors, local officials, and anybody who is anybody will be there. These meetings are hosted by their respective political parties and are intended to choose their state’s nomination for President of the United States. For example, Republican caucus attendees may vote for Donald Trump or Ted Cruz, or any other candidate, while Democratic caucus attendees could choose either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders. The candidates who gain the most votes, or are deemed viable, are allocated electoral delegates from their party.
As Iowa pushes through its final hours in kicking off 2016’s voting cycle, candidates will be anxious to see the eventual results. Some of these candidates will inevitably drop out due to poor performance, e.g. Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum. For others, it will be another step in a tense showdown. Donald Trump is the favored candidate, especially after receiving endorsements from Sarah Palin and Evangelical leader Jerry Falwell, Jr., but may only have a slight lead over Ted Cruz when the votes are all in. Bernie Sanders has been connecting with voters on the ground, and his support is strong, but will it be enough to beat the Democratic favorite, Hillary Clinton?
Today’s results will also set the stage for next week’s New Hampshire Primary, where Bernie Sanders is seen to be leading Hillary Clinton in the polls. Jeb Bush and John Kasich, while neither are expected to win in Iowa, are seeing better opportunities in the Granite State. However, they will still have to deal with Donald Trump, who leads the field by a large margin, according to polling data.
Patrick Holman is the founder and managing editor of Salt Lake Film Review. As an avid film viewer, he created SLFR in order to create a place for discussion and to explore the qualities of movies. When he isn’t watching a movie, or writing about them, Patrick works as an OST professional in Salt Lake County, Utah.