By: Cate Eberly

The Iowa Caucus was the first of the presidential candidate nominations for the Republican party and took place on Monday, January 15 this year.

Unlike how other states nominate their presidential candidates by a simple vote, the Iowa caucus has representatives speak on behalf of the candidate—usually describing plans for office and core beliefs. Following this, ballots are passed out to caucusgoers who then secretly vote on candidates. 

After the Iowa Caucus, candidate Donald Trump walked away with more than 50% of the votes cast. Trump was declared to have won over 56,000 votes. 

The voter turnout of over 110,000 voters sat well below the predicted number. This could be due to extremely low temperatures, hazardous storms, as well as declining interest in the upcoming election.

As the November 2024 election gradually gets closer, students should continue to pay attention to the primaries.

“The Iowa caucus indicates what is going to happen in the upcoming primaries,” said government teacher Perry Caldwell. “Paying attention now will help students in the future by furthering your understanding when students have the opportunity to vote.”

Following the Iowa Caucus, Florida governor Ron DeSantis dropped out of the race. His support of around 11% will likely be shifted to Nikki Haley. Those voters could make the difference for Haley moving into the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday, January 23. Vivek Ramaswamy has also dropped out of the race and has chosen to endorse Trump. His 6% support is predicted to shift over to Trump.