On Monday, Feb. 1, 2016, the first event to select delegates in the presidential nomination took place in Iowa. The caucus results have brought disappointment to many candidates and their supporters. However, excitement and encouragement were also found by others.
The final polls on Jan. 30, stated Hillary Clinton had three percent more support than Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump was ahead of the other Republican candidates by five percent. Some caucus meetings in Iowa reported resorting to a coin toss to determine whether they would ultimately give their vote to Clinton or Sanders. On the Republican side, there were rumors and accusations about tweets sent out to the caucus attendees lying about one of the candidates quitting prior to the evening’s events.
At the end of a long evening, Clinton edged out Sanders by one delegate and 0.3 percent of the vote. NBC News reported at 2:37 a.m. CST, on Feb. 2, the final allocation of Democratic delegates were awarded, Clinton received 21 and Sanders 20. Martin O’Malley only managed to receive 0.6 percent of the vote.
According to the 2016 Election Central website, Ted Cruz was declared the Republican winner with 27.6 percent of the votes, Donald Trump came in second at 24.3 percent, and Marco Rubio garnered third with 23.1 percent.
Ben Carson received less than 10 percent, Rand Paul eeked out 4.5 percent, and all the other Republican candidates trailed behind Jeb Bush’s 2.8 percent. The poorest showing was Jim Gilmore with only 12 actual votes, giving him 0.0 percent.
NBC News indicated thirty delegates were awarded among the Republican candidates in Iowa. As a result, Cruz was allocated eight, Trump and Rubio each received seven, Carson obtained three and one delegate each was allocated to Rand Paul and Bush.
Democratic Candidate Responses
Sanders’ campaign sent out emails to his volunteers on Feb. 2, 2016, stating, the message the people of Iowa sent to the political and media establishment was profound, “and what that message said was that given the enormous crises facing our country, it is too late for establishment politics and economics in this country.” He described being overwhelmed by the millions of supporters that made his near-victory occur. Later the same day, Sanders released a video made by a caucus member of a coin toss used to choose between Clinton and himself.
Clinton responded to the narrow win by telling her supporters she was breathing a sigh of relief and promised, “I will do what I have always done all of my life. I will always stand up for you, I will always fight for you, and I will always work to achieve the America I believe in.”
According to The Des Moines Register, O’Malley dropped out of the race. He told his supporters, “Look, gang, in conclusion, there is no conclusion. The fight continues. We fought very, very hard in order to give the people a choice, and the people have made their choice tonight.” He explained that the numbers received in Iowa did not reflect the diligent work the supporters did for his campaign.
Republican Candidate Responses
The first thing Cruz told his supporters was, “God bless the great state of Iowa.” He continued by congratulating all of his supporters. He boasted that 48,608 Iowans had voted for him and that was a record number for any Republican primary winner.
Trump conceded defeat, he said, “We finished second,” and added his intent to be in New Hampshire on Tuesday, where he believes it will be a great week. He optimistically added, “I think we’re going to be proclaiming victory.”
Rubio, who had been told by others in the party there was little chance of winning, told his supporters, “This is the moment they said would never happen.” CNN reported that aides from Trump’s team and those from the Cruz team have conceded Rubio may, indeed, gain some momentum by placing third in the Iowan Caucus.
According to Politico, Carson made a claim stating there were erroneous texts and lie-filled tweets sent out by the Cruz campaign. These maliciously advised supporters to refrain from casting a vote for Carson as he had dropped from the race. Carson believed this is the reason he came in fourth place.
Carson sent his supporters an email that read, “For months, my campaign has survived the lies and dirty tricks from opponents who profess to detest the games of the political class, but in reality, are masters at it. Even tonight, my opponents resorted to political tricks by tweeting, texting, and telling precinct captains to announce that I had suspended my campaign – in some cases asking caucus goers to change their votes.”
Jason Osborne, Carson’s campaign senior communications strategist, squelched further assumptions of the candidate dropping out. After it was reported the candidate was going to Florida, instead of New Hampshire, which added fuel to the rumors. In a tweet on @RealBenCarson, Osborne explained Carson was making the detour in order to obtain fresh clothing, “not standing down.”
Next Stop: Primary in New Hampshire
On Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016, New Hampshire will host the first primary for the nomination season. The campaigns for Sanders, Clinton, Cruz, Trump, Rubio, and Carson have confirmed they will be there prior to the event to continue politicking.
Two debates have been scheduled to take place before this primary. The Democratic debate was scheduled for Feb. 4, 2016, and the next Republican debate will take place on Feb. 6, 2016.
Several candidates have dropped out of the presidential nomination race since the Iowa caucus took place. They included Martin O’Malley on the Democratic ticket, and on the Republican ticket, Rand Paul, Rick Santorum, and Mike Huckabee have all dropped their campaigns. In spite of their low standings in Iowa, Jeb Bush and Jim Gilmore are expected to be in New Hampshire. Perhaps, unlike the Iowa Caucus, there will be no need for coin tosses, lying texts, or accusations of deceitful behavior taking place in New Hampshire before, during, or after the primary results are counted.
By Cathy Milne
Edited by Leigh Haugh
Sources:
2016 Election Central: Iowa Caucus Results; New Hampshire Debate Schedule; New Hampshire Primary
NBC News: Iowa Entrance Poll Results: Why Clinton and Sanders Are So Close
NBC News: Martin O’Malley to Suspend Presidential Campaign
Politico: Carson accuses opponents of ‘lies and dirty tricks’
Featured Image Courtesy of Cary Lee’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
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First Inset Image Courtesy of Karen Murphy’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Second Inset Image Courtesy of Gage Skidmore’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Third Inset Image Courtesy of Marc Nozell’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Inset Images Courtesy of Gage Skidmore’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
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