Iowa has long held the nation’s first presidential caucuses, followed by New Hampshire’s leadoff primary, but the two, smaller states have been criticized for wielding outsized influence in presidential nominations
SAN DIEGO — Republicans from Iowa and New Hampshire defended their coveted early spots in presidential nominating contests Friday, as national party leaders consider recommending a new pathway to the White House for the 2012 election.
Iowa has long held the nation’s first presidential caucuses, followed by New Hampshire’s leadoff primary. But the two, smaller states have been criticized for wielding outsized influence in presidential nominations, and the 2008 election created a virtual stampede as states jostled for early dates on the political calendar.
A panel of the Republican National Committee, meeting in San Diego, began hearings Friday evaluating the sequence of contests, although a recommendation is not expected from the group until next year.
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Under an RNC change last year, most states are barred from holding primaries before the first Tuesday in February 2012. New Hampshire and South Carolina cannot vote before the last two weeks of January 2012. The rule is silent on Iowa, though party officials expect it to kick off the selections with party caucuses in the first two weeks of January.
With those dates set, the issue is where other states eager to influence the nomination will fit in. Several plans have been proposed to rearrange the calendar, including grouping states in regions and rotating the order every four years.
California Republican Party Chairman Ron Nehring told the panel the nation needs a presidential calendar “that looks like it was designed on purpose, which currently is not the case.”
Nehring warned that the nation is drifting toward a national primary day, which he said would inevitably favor better-known and better-financed candidates. He noted California moved its presidential primary to February from June last year, triggering other states to leapfrog forward.
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This is a great idea. The early states have a stranglehold on the nomination and I believe do not adequately represent the entire country. A primary schedule which balances the politics of different regions would go a long way towards a more representative nomination process.
In addition, we need to limit primary voting to Party members only and require ID.
These modifications would be a major step towards reclaiming the Party.
It does seem as if Iowa is not the ideal state, since it is normally not a Republican state.
I think this would be a great change the Party should seriously consider. I think it would be beneficial to Mitt, don’t you?
Instituting closed primaries would be at the top of the list too. Isn’t that determined on a state by state basis though?