Voting in the 2020 election kicks off today, exactly nine months before Election Day, as Iowans gather at more than 1,600 caucus sites to pick their favorite candidate.
Candidates have been criss-crossing the Hawkeye State for more than two months (Andrew Yang and Amy Klobuchar have clocked in the most Iowa-time, spending 71 and 67 day there, respectively). The Iowa Caucuses are famous for person-to-person campaigning. It’s not just about making your picks inside a private voting booth — citizens can be swayed by their neighbors throughout the night to ditch their initial pick for nominee and go with a different candidate.
Many young voters will enter politics for the first time tonight, and during the day Cheddar caught up with a precinct captain at the University of Iowa.
While those in Iowa waited all day for tonight’s main events, caususes were also held overseas and Senator Elizabeth Warren got off to an early lead in Paris — one of three global sites where, for the first time, Iowans who are out of the country be able to participate in the Democratic caucuses.
Back in Iowa tonight the caucuses are underway and some caucusgoers brought their talking points to support their favorite candidates. Others brought liquid courage.
Now that the doors have closed across gymnasiums, community centers and libraries across the state, voters will pick their top choice. But some voters came in planning to vote for one candidate, only to meet another and change before the caucus even started.
So how does it work? This about sums it up.
At the Des Moines Knapp Center, Iowans are making moves into candidate corners. For those who have never seen how a caucus works, it's literally people moving to their respective corners.
Any candidate who gets at least 15 percent in most cases is considered a “viable” candidate and their supporters are locked into their choice.
But if a candidate gets less than 15 percent of the caucus, they are considered “not viable” and their supporters can opt to either move to another candidate’s corner or convince fellow caucusgoers to join them.
Of course, that begs the question: Is it humane or harsh that voters have to ditch their pick if they’re not viable?
Of course, only Americans over 18 can caucus today (or those who will be 18 by Election Day), but it's never too early to get a civics lesson!
The caucus has moved into the realignment phase — when citizens try to talk neighbors into switching camps. And when all else fails, there’s always a good ol’ fashioned coin toss.
Moving into the 11pm ET hour, it looks like there’s been a hitch in the caucuses’ giddyup.
Iowa appears to be reporting more results than in elections past, adding to the delay.
Although Iowa results are still forthcoming, Sen. Amy Klobuchar decided to go ahead and speak to her supporters around 11:30pm ET. So, with only 41 delegates of the required 1,991 needed to win the Democratic nomination up for grabs tonight, the ability shape her narrative tonight may count for something.
Yet Sen. Bernie Sanders remains confident...the results will come eventually.
Former VP Joe Biden says he’s feeling good...but he’s ready to move on to the next big event: New Hampshire!
But as the clock struck midnight (ET) on Iowa Caucus night, and the results escaped our grasp, many in the Twitter-verse agreed:
Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, NJ and Ayana Morris, co-director of the documentary 'Why Is We Americans?,' join Cheddar News to discuss the new documentary highlighting the impact of the Baraka family.
Former New York City mayor and lawyer to Donald Trump Rudy Giuliani made his singing debut on a taping of Fox’s The Masked Singer. However, Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke, two judges on the competition show, reportedly left in protest when Giuliani was unmasked upon being eliminated.
All Hands celebrates Black History Month by highlighting achievements in inclusivity and paying homage to those who have fought for equal rights. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) joins Cheddar News to discuss voter suppression; Damali Peterman, CEO of Breakthrough ADR, elaborates on the biggest barriers for Black professionals; Andre Perry, senior fellow of Brookings Institution, dives into student loans and the racial wealth divide; and lastly, BET CEO Scott Mills discusses the company's initiatives for 2022.
All month long Cheddar News is celebrating Black History Month.
In our nation’s capital, Black history is being made right now.
cheddar's own Arielle Hixon puts the spotlight on three lawmakers making that happen, Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL), Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC).
Representative Maxine Waters (D-Calif. 43rd District) joined Cheddar News to talk about the current political climate in America, including efforts to roll back voting rights in multiple states in light of Black History Month. "Why do we have to deal with those who still believe that somehow this country only belongs to the whites of the country and that somehow they have to do everything that they can to undermine our voting and do voters suppression to keep us from being influential and at the table by which to solve problems?" she asked. Waters chided "two Democrats" who she said were stymying attempts to rectify the issue and also spoke on President Biden’s promise to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court.
Wall Street saw another volatile day after the Federal Reserve left rates unchanged for now, with plans to raise rates in March at its next meeting in order to ease inflation. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed has not made decisions on the size of rate increases, adding that the Fed is not trying to get inflation below two-percent. Ken Johnson, CFA and Investment Strategy Analyst explains why Powell thinks that high inflation is a significant threat to the labor market.
Anu Gaggar, global investment strategist for Commonwealth Financial Network, joined Cheddar News to discuss how global supply chains could be disrupted even further by an armed conflict in Ukraine.
Solid-state battery maker Factorial Energy recently raised $200 million in a Series D round led by Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis. Factorial says the funding will be used to accelerate commercial production and deployment of its solid-state battery technology, which the company says is safer, and offers up to 50% more driving range than current lithium-ion technology. Factorial also has joint development agreements (announced in late 2021) with Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis, and Hyundai, three of the top 10 global automotive manufacturers, to commercialize its batteries. Factorial CEO Siyu Huang joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
