I recently wrote an article regarding the Idaho Republican Party Caucus elections
and learned a lot of details that I feel are important to share as widely as possible.
I know I don't normally, really ever,
get in to anything political here on the blog,
but I think this matters so here it is.
I've edited the article a titch and am including it here in this post below...
Obviously this applies specifically to Idahoans, but maybe it'll help anyone from elsewhere too :)
If you don't want to read the whole thing, the takeaway is this:
- If you want to have a voice regarding who will be up against Obama in November, you need to CLICK HERE to find your county's Caucus election information and go vote on Tuesday, March 6!
- The May Primary Election we are used to here in Idaho will not include selection of presidential candidates.
- It goes without saying that you need to be a registered Republican to participate. (I don't know that Stephen and I are!) So, if that's the case with you also, you can get the voter registration card HERE- printing and filling it out to take with you (along with photo ID) on March 6th will save some time!
- There are lots of other important and interesting details, so if our next President is anything you care about -and you know you do, at least to some degree- then, read on!
Thanks for stickin' with me while I go outside of the ordinary-hopefully it will be helpful!
New Idaho Republican Caucus Turns Idaho into ‘Big Prize’
Idaho Republican Caucus events
being held in each county across the state on Tuesday, March 6, mark a
historical first for the State of Idaho. In years past, Idaho has held only a Primary
election during a presidential race year. But for 2012, Idaho will join ten other states holding
Caucus elections on “Super Tuesday.”
This change gives the Gem State a
much more viable voice regarding which current Republican Party candidate will
face President Barack Obama this November. Each of Idaho’s 44 counties will
simultaneously host caucus events the evening of March 6, 2012.
“This is an exciting year for
Republicans and for Idaho,” Madison County Republican Party Chair Elaine King
said. “The thing that is so exciting is that we didn’t know up front we’d have
so many delegates. When we saw we had more than so many other states, we
realized that Idaho could really be making a difference.”
In speaking of delegates, King is
referring to the 32 representatives Idaho will have at the Republican National
Convention to be held in August. Each state hosting a Caucus is allowed
delegates based on state population. Barring that the state chooses not to hold
their Caucus election prior to March 6, then that state has a collective voice
that speaks in favor of the presidential candidate winning at least 50-percent
of the Caucus vote. States that hold Caucus elections prior to March 6, like
Iowa and Florida, forfeit 50-percent of their delegates as a result.
One notable stipulation of the new
Idaho Caucus is that Idaho delegates will be bound to cast their vote at the National
Republican Convention for the presidential candidate that earns at least
50-percent of the vote on March 6. In some states, including Iowa, delegates
are not actually required to cast their national vote for the candidate who won
in their home state. The candidate whom will be determined to be the Republican
presidential contender at the National Convention in August will have to earn
at least 1,044 delegate votes to become so.
“Major networks like CNN, FOX and
MSNBC have been contacting Republican Party leaders in Boise,” King said. “They
see the delegate numbers and realize that Idaho is a big prize.”
In order for their names to be
considered in the Caucus election, presidential candidates must have paid a
$2,000 fee by February 5. King said that all four candidates, Mitt Romney, Newt
Gingrich, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum, have already paid and thus will be in the
running for votes March 6.
Idaho Caucus elections are open to
all voters registered as Republicans, though they won’t find the typical
polling booths and metal boxes. “It’ll be more of a meeting, an event,” King
said.
Many counties will hold raffles and
giveaways, as well as have food and music as part of the Caucus election.
Around the state, voters can begin registering as Republicans as early as 4:00
p.m. Voting will begin at 7:00 p.m.
Several different styles of voting
will be used during Caucus elections, including paper ballots or voting tokens.
Republicans attending can use the method of voting to select first, second and
third round choices for presidential candidate. The votes will be cast and collected
publically, as well as counted on the spot. Any candidate receiving less that
15-percent of votes will be removed from the running. If one candidate gets
50-percent of the vote in the initial count, no additional rounds will take
place. If not, second round votes will then be counted for those voters that
had chosen the loosing candidate. The process will continue until a candidate
receives 50-percent of the vote.
Voters should note that
presidential candidates will not
appear on Primary Election ballots in May. Tuesday, March 6, will be the only
day that Idaho citizens have the opportunity to cast their vote for who will ultimately
represent the Republican Party in the 2012 presidential race.
