The Iowa GOP announced Saturday that it will hold its first-in-the-nation Republican presidential caucus on January 15, 2024, kicking off the party’s bid for the White House slightly earlier than recent nominating fights.
In a statement, Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann said the party is “committed to maintaining Iowa’s cherished first-in-the-nation caucuses, and look forward to holding a historic caucus in the coming months and defeating Joe Biden come November 2024.”
Campaigning for support in Iowa is already well underway: Former President Donald Trump, former Vice President Mike Pence, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Miami Mayor Francis Saurez and radio host Larry Elder all appeared at campaign events in Iowa last week.
Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis also hosted her first solo public event in Johnston, Iowa on Thursday alongside Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, and Ron DeSantis and other Republicans have been regular presences in the state in recent months.
Kaufmann, who spoke to reporters about the caucuses Saturday afternoon on a Zoom call,
Republicans are keeping same general framework for their 2024 primaries that they have used in recent years, with Iowa followed by New Hampshire’s primary and then Nevada and South Carolina rounding out the GOP’s slate of early-voting states.
Since the Iowa caucuses are party-run, the state GOP’s decision has no bearing on the Democratic contest in Iowa. The Democratic National Committee’s decision to shuffle its primary calendar means Iowa Democrats are set to lose their first-in-the-nation status, following long-running party concerns about the state’s diversity and issues with the vote count in 2020.
The DNC’s new calendar makes the South Carolina primary the party’s first approved nominating contest of 2024, followed later by New Hampshire and Nevada on the same day. But intra-party fights in some states and Republican control in others is making implementing the DNC’s preferred calendar difficult.
Kaufmann, who spoke to reporters about the caucuses Saturday afternoon on a Zoom call, blamed President Joe Biden for jeopardizing Iowa’s first-in-the-nation status and said that “Biden thumbed his nose at Iowa Democrats and Iowans.”
“No matter what, Iowa Democrats are committed to moving forward with the most inclusive caucus process in Iowa’s history,” Iowa Democratic Party chair Rita Hart said in her own statement. “We’re committed to doing what’s good for Democrats, what’s good for Iowa, and what’s good for democracy.”
Kaufmann also said, when asked why the GOP caucuses will be held on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, that “we see this as honoring the legacy of Martin Luther King.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
