This is getting so bad they should be looking for the Black Box…
As the story out of Iowa continues it only continues to get worse. What began as a delay Monday evening became a snafu, evolved quickly into a calamity, and as the days rolled forward the Iowa Caucus has become an all out fiasco. Four days have elapsed and we still do not have a full result, and the results are only becoming more contested.
Now today – finally — the chairman of the Democratic National Convention, Tom Perez, has come forward and declared that he is calling for a complete recanvassing of the state results.
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
The spin on this is rather remarkable. The announcement comes with the claim that they have measures in place to address this issue thanks to the major revisions of the DNC statutes. We should be relieved, it seems, that provisions are in place to deal with this problem. According to the Washington Post—
The state party, in reforms for 2020, introduced an opportunity for campaigns to request a recanvass and, if necessary, a recount of the results if they are able to show that new figures could alter the allocation of delegates to the national convention in the summer.
Of course, to get to this place Iowa had to be subjected to those same reforms that created the problems. The introduction of a new vote recording software app has led to this mushroom cloud in the Iowa farmlands, but we are to be calmed by the fact that restorative measures are in place. In keeping with many of the questions raised this week even this measure being undertaken today is not entirely clear.
The state’s rules do not explain how exactly a recanvass differs from a full recount, though both are more significant than a simple precinct review, which involves checking caucus-level anomalies.
The problems, as we are learning, were not taking place at the caucus precinct levels. It was in the process of delivering the results to the state party. The New York Times reported that they have found over 100 irregularities with the reporting of precinct results.
To say the Democrat party is in a state of disarray this week is not hyperbolic. The president was acquitted in a flawed impeachment attempt, his State Of The Union address has been hailed as the Speaker of the House has been displayed as unhinged, and poll numbers are showing a spike in support for the president and the party.
Meanwhile, the election campaign that was supposed to launch the Democrats to a takeover of Washington D.C. has imploded on the launchpad, and they now have to pick through that wreckage. Upcoming votes, including Nevada’s caucuses on February 22, are set to use this same controversial election app. It will be closely watched what decisions the DNC makes in the coming weeks.
Even these supposed solutions are being met with skepticism. It is becoming obvious that this will not become a blithe repair job for the national party.
The Iowa caucus should be recanvassed AFTER the results are fully reported out. It is wildly manipulative and irresponsible to do so at 97% of the vote just as Sanders’ lead was set to be revealed. https://t.co/MLuWrbkSDW
— Krystal Ball (@krystalball) February 6, 2020
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