The DNC has ordered a recanvass of the Iowa caucus, but the party should refuse to seat Iowa delegates unless they are needed to determine the nominee.
DNC Chairman Tom Perez announced the recanvass:
Enough is enough. In light of the problems that have emerged in the implementation of the delegate selection plan and in order to assure public confidence in the results, I am calling on the Iowa Democratic Party to immediately begin a recanvass.
— Tom Perez (@TomPerez) February 6, 2020
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A recanvass is a review of the worksheets from each caucus site to ensure accuracy.
The IDP will continue to report results.
— Tom Perez (@TomPerez) February 6, 2020
A recanvass isn’t going to fix this mess.
Short of Iowa redoing their caucus, which would outrage both voters and the candidates, the DNC needs to tell Iowa that their delegates won’t be seated unless they are needed to determine the nominee.
Multiple candidates have declared victory. The delegates are going to be split between at least four and as many as five campaigns, so no one campaign would be more harmed than any other by refusing to seat the Iowa delegation.
The DNC also needs to ban caucuses. States choose how they run their process, but the DNC can refuse to accept the results if a state runs a caucus. The caucus system is a constant source of drama and problems. It is time for the caucuses to be retired.
Since there are going to be questioned about any result, the best thing for Democrats is to refuse to seat any delegates from this clusterf— of a caucus.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association