2008 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses

Last updated

2008 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses
Flag of Nevada.svg
←  2004 January 19, 2008 (2008-01-19) 2016  →
←  MI
SC  →
  Hillary Rodham Clinton-cropped.jpg Barack Obama Senate portrait crop.jpg
Nominee Hillary Clinton Barack Obama
Home state New York Illinois
Delegate count1213
Popular vote5,4594,844
Percentage50.82%45.09%
Nevada Democratic presidential caucus election results by county margins, 2008.svg
Caucus results by county
Clinton:     40–50%     50–60%
Obama:     40–50%     —50–60%     —60–70%
Nevada map showing counties.png

The 2008 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses took place on January 19, 2008 [1] after having been moved from a later date by the Nevada Democratic Party. [2] The Nevada Democratic Caucus was considered important in determining the eventual party nominee, as many described it as the "Bellwether of the West" seeing as how it is the first Western state to vote in the Democratic Presidential Primary season.

Contents

Nevada's 25 "pledged" delegates to the Democratic National Convention were chosen on May 17, 2008, when the Nevada Democratic Party held its State Convention. [3] Barack Obama ended up receiving 14 national delegates compared to Hillary Clinton who received 11 national delegates. However, Clinton did ultimately prevail in terms of the number of votes received during the Nevada Democratic Caucus. It was the only state that held a caucus that she won during the course of the Democratic Presidential Primary.

Process

The Nevada Democratic Caucus was open to all voters who would be 18 by November 4, 2008, regardless of party affiliation. Republicans, unaffiliated voters, and members of other parties could change their registration at the door, and new voters could register as well. [4]

As with all Democratic caucuses, voters gathered into preference groups for each candidate. A minimum threshold of 15 percent was required in each precinct in order to achieve viability. If a candidate's preference group was not viable, they chose to caucus with another group, or be uncommitted. Unlike the Iowa Caucus, "raiding" of other, already viable caucus groups, was prohibited. [5] Delegates to the county convention were then selected amongst the candidate groups. A similar process occurred at the county convention. Although they file statements of support for their chosen candidate, all delegates are technically unbound until the state convention.

In addition to the 1,754 neighborhood caucus locations, nine at-large caucus locations were available for shift workers who could not return to their home precincts to caucus. These at-large precincts were at the Wynn, Bellagio, The Mirage, Paris Las Vegas, New York-New York, Flamingo, Caesars Palace, and The Rio, all located in Clark County. [6] Workers who worked within 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of the caucus site, were scheduled to work during or within one hour of the caucus period, and those who had an employer ID showing their employment in the zone were permitted to attend. Unlike regular caucuses where delegates are apportioned based on registered voters, the at-large locations were allocated based on attendance, which caused controversy (see below). [5]

The Nevada Democratic Party reported county convention delegate totals to the media and not actual votes, similar to the way the Iowa Democratic Party did in its caucus.

Pre-caucus events, predictions, and polls

The date of the Nevada Democratic Caucuses were moved from a later date to January 19, 2008. Analysts from CNN believe that this occurred because of many factors, such as the growing West, a large Hispanic population, a heavily unionized work force, the influence of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and the idea that earlier caucuses increased voter participation. In addition, Democrats in the working class hold sway over liberal activists; this would allow candidates to discuss practical issues and policy details. [7]

After Barack Obama's win in the Iowa Democratic Caucuses and Hillary Clinton's surprise comeback win at the New Hampshire Democratic Primary, the Nevada Democratic Caucuses were seen as a potential tie-breaker. A victory in the Nevada Democratic Caucus would provide a candidate with momentum heading into Super Tuesday. In addition, the Nevada Democratic Caucuses were seen as a test of the organizing abilities of its unions and the growing influence of the state's Latino community, which makes up more than 20 percent of the population. [8]

On January 9, 2008, Obama received his first key national labor endorsement from leaders of the 450,000-member UNITE HERE union. This endorsement was made on behalf of Nevada's largest union, the 60,000-member Culinary Workers Union, Local 226. [9] As a result, Obama received a huge boost in support from the Latino population. [7]

A pre-caucus opinion poll conducted by the Las Vegas Review-Journal on January 18, 2008, showed that Hillary Rodham Clinton was leading with 41 percent of the vote. Barack Obama had 32 percent of the vote, and John Edwards had 14 percent. [8] Another poll by the American Research Group five days before the caucuses on January 14, 2008, showed that Clinton was leading with 35 percent, Obama had 32 percent, and Edwards at 25 percent. [10] These polls only showed the results of the top-tier candidates who were viable to win the caucuses.

Casino caucus lawsuit

An "at-large precinct" is officiated in Caesars Palace on election day. Nevada caucus 2008 Caesars Palace CNN.jpg
An "at-large precinct" is officiated in Caesars Palace on election day.

In an attempt to block nine at-large caucus precincts from being held on the Las Vegas Strip, the Nevada State Education Association and six Las Vegas area residents filed a 13-page lawsuit on January 11, 2008. The at-large sites were created to facilitate the caucus participation of casino workers, and others working within 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of the Strip, but the plaintiffs said that these sites would both elect more state delegates than others and violate state election law. [11] While the suit was not officially supported by any presidential campaign, the fact that it was filed two days after the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 endorsed Obama and that several of the State Education Association's leaders endorsed Clinton led some political commentators to describe it as a proxy battle between the two campaigns. [12]

After a court hearing, Judge James Mahan of the U.S District Court for Nevada ruled that the caucus locations were fair and valid and disagreed with the group's argument. Therefore, the nine caucus sites located in casinos in Las Vegas were allowed to operate. [13]

Results

Hillary Clinton won the most local delegates while Barack Obama was projected to win the most delegates to the Democratic National Convention. Nevada's delegates to the Democratic National Convention (DNC) were not allocated to the candidates for a few months, so current DNC delegate projections assumed that local and state delegate preferences remained the same through the county conventions, which occurred in February, and the state convention, which occurred in April, [14] The reason for the so-called "split-decision" [15] is Nevada's chosen method of electing DNC delegates. Six distinct sets of pledged DNC delegates were elected in April. The three sets determined exclusively by Clark County delegates were split evenly for a total of six for Obama and six for Clinton. The statewide pot was split five for Clinton and four for Obama. Obama's advantage was due to his strength in Northern Nevada, particularly of Washoe County's three DNC delegates Obama received two as well as the one "rural" DNC delegate who backed Obama as well.

Unlike in Iowa, the Nevada Democratic Party reports only the number of county convention delegates won statewide by supporters of the candidates (in Iowa "state delegate equivalents" are reported). In neither Iowa nor Nevada are individual voter preferences reported. And like Iowa, all local delegates selected in the January 19 caucuses are technically free to support any candidate during later stages of the nominating process. [16] [17]

At the controversial At-Large caucuses on the Vegas Strip, many workers who belonged to unions other than Local 226 attended; contrary to the statements of President Bill Clinton leading up to the vote, [18] all workers on shift within 2.5 miles (4.0 km) were permitted to caucus. [19] Clinton supporters won the Strip, 268 local delegates to 224. [19] Widely publicized statements by President Clinton that voters in "casinos" would have at least 5 times the influence of other voters [18] turned out to be incorrect; Strip voters had only twice the influence that voters in the rest of the state on average had. [20]

Caucus results

Caucus Date: January 19, 2008

National Pledged Delegates Determined: 0 (of 25)

Nevada Democratic Presidential Caucus Results – 2008
PartyCandidateCounty DelegatesPercentageEstimated national delegates
Democratic Hillary Clinton 5,45950.82%12
Democratic Barack Obama 4,84445.09%13
Democratic John Edwards 3993.71%0
Democratic Dennis Kucinich 50.05%0
Democratic Mike Gravel 00%0
Democratic Write-in candidate10.01%0
Democratic Uncommitted340.32%0
Totals2,500100.00%25
Voter turnout %—

County conventions

All of Nevada's county conventions took place on February 23, but one county's convention (Clark County) had attendance that overwhelmed its ability to continue. That convention was therefore recessed to April 12. [21]

Convention dates: February 23–April 12, 2008

National pledged delegates determined: 0 (of 25)

Nevada Democratic Presidential Caucus Results – 2008
PartyCandidateState DelegatesPercentageEstimated national delegates
Democratic Hillary Clinton 1,71851.09%12
Democratic Barack Obama 1,64548.91%13
Totals3,363100.00%25
Voter turnout %—

State convention

Convention date: May 17, 2008

National pledged delegates determined: 25 (of 25)

Nevada Democratic Presidential Caucus Results – 2008
PartyCandidateVotesPercentageNational delegates
Democratic Barack Obama 1,36555.04%14
Democratic Hillary Clinton 1,11244.84%11
Totals2,480100.00%25
Voter turnout %—

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States presidential primary</span> Nominating process of candidates for United States presidential elections

Each of the 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and territories of the United States holds either primary elections or caucuses to help nominate individual candidates for president of the United States. This process is designed to choose the candidates that will represent their political parties in the general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iowa caucuses</span> United States electoral event

The Iowa caucuses are quadrennial electoral events for the Democratic and Republican parties in the U.S. state of Iowa. Unlike primary elections, where registered voters cast ballots at polling places on election day, Iowa caucuses are meetings where voters gather to discuss and select candidates for their registered party. Political parties hold the caucuses, in contrast to most state-run primaries. Both presidential and midterm elections in Iowa use caucuses. The caucuses are also held to select delegates to county conventions and party committees, among other party activities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries</span> Selection of the Democratic Party nominee

From January 3 to June 3, 2008, voters of the Democratic Party chose their nominee for president in the 2008 United States presidential election. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois was selected as the nominee, becoming the first African American to secure the presidential nomination of any major political party in the United States. However, due to a close race between Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, the contest remained competitive for longer than expected; neither candidate received enough pledged delegates from state primaries and caucuses to achieve a majority, without endorsements from unpledged delegates (superdelegates).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Iowa Democratic presidential caucuses</span>

The 2008 Iowa Democratic presidential caucus occurred on January 3, and was the state caucuses of the Iowa Democratic Party. It was the first election for the Democrats of the 2008 presidential election. Also referred to as "the First in the Nation Caucus," it was the first election of the primary season on both the Democratic and Republican sides. Of the eight major Democratic presidential candidates, then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois received the most votes and was ultimately declared the winner of the Iowa Democratic Caucus of 2008, making him the first African American to win the caucus and the first African American to win a primary state since Jesse Jackson in 1988. Former U.S. Senator John Edwards of North Carolina came in second place and then-U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton of New York finished third, though Clinton received more delegates than Edwards. Campaigning had begun as early as two years before the event.

The results of the 2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries are the detailed outcomes of a series of contests by which members of the United States Democratic Party chose their candidate for the 2008 U.S. presidential election. The contests are held in each of the fifty U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Democrats Abroad. The Northern Mariana Islands was the lone U.S. state or territory which did not have a primary or caucus election in 2008. The outcomes include totals of delegates selected as well as popular votes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 United States presidential election in Iowa</span>

The 2008 United States presidential election in Iowa took place on November 4, 2008, as part of the 2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose seven representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary</span>

The 2008 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary on January 8, 2008 was the first primary in the United States in 2008. Its purpose was to determine the number of delegates from New Hampshire that would represent a certain candidate at the National Convention. In a primary, members of a political party—in this case, the Democratic Party—will select the candidates to a subsequent election. Since 1920, New Hampshire has always hosted the first primaries in the entire nation. The Democratic Party's primary occurred on the same day as the Republican primary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Michigan Democratic presidential primary</span>

The 2008 Michigan Democratic presidential primary took place January 15, 2008. Originally, the state had 156 delegates up for grabs that were to be awarded in the following way: 83 delegates were to be awarded based on the winner in each of Michigan's 15 congressional districts while an additional 45 delegates were to be awarded to the statewide winner. Twenty-eight unpledged delegates, known as superdelegates, were initially able to cast their votes at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Nevada Republican presidential caucuses</span>

The 2008 Nevada Republican presidential caucuses was held on January 19, the same day as the 2008 South Carolina Republican primary, with 31 delegates at stake. Mitt Romney was the winner in Nevada with 51% of the votes, with Ron Paul in second place. Half of Romney's votes came from Mormons, while two-thirds of the independent voters favored Paul. According to the Las Vegas Sun, Republicans crossed over in large numbers to vote Democratic; CNN exit polls indicated that Republican voters made up 4% of the Democratic caucus turnout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nevada presidential caucuses</span> Electoral event

The Nevada presidential caucuses are an electoral event in which citizens met in precinct caucuses to elect delegates to the corresponding county conventions. In 2021, Harry Reid passed legislation (AB321) to include primaries in hopes of increasing voter turn-out. Nevada has for decades and still does have a caucus. The caucus is where the delegates receive the votes that will be carried to the National Convention and not the primaries. There are 17 counties in Nevada and the state has 26 delegates. The Nevada caucuses began in 1981. The Kerry/Dean caucus was held on February 14, 2004. In 2008 the DNC gave Nevada the official first in the west status reflecting the growing importance of the West as well as Nevada's electoral bellwether status. The 2008 Nevada caucuses were the third major electoral event in the nominating process for President of the United States. In 2016, the Democratic caucus was held on February 20 and the Republican caucus was held on February 23.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Florida Democratic presidential primary</span>

The 2008 Florida Democratic presidential primary took place on January 29, 2008. Originally, the state had 185 delegates up for grabs that were to be awarded in the following way: 121 delegates were to be awarded based on the winner in each of Florida's 25 congressional districts while an additional 64 delegates were to be awarded to the statewide winner. Twenty-five unpledged delegates, known as superdelegates, were initially able to cast their votes at the Democratic National Convention.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Colorado Democratic presidential caucuses</span>

The 2008 Colorado Democratic presidential caucuses took place on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008. As he did in every other state that held a caucus rather than a primary, Barack Obama won the caucus by a wide, two-to-one margin over Hillary Clinton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Texas Democratic presidential primary and caucuses</span>

The 2008 Texas Democratic presidential primary and caucuses were a series of events to determine the delegates that the Texas Democratic Party sent to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Delegates were selected using results from two sources: the Texas Presidential Primary held on March 4 by the Secretary of State of Texas's office, and a series of caucus events held between March 4 and June 7 by the Texas Democratic Party. The indecisive results of Super Tuesday, and the fact that Texas had the largest number of delegates among the states remaining on the Democratic primary calendar, resulted in the Texas primary receiving significant attention from both the Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama campaigns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 United States presidential election in Nevada</span>

The 2012 United States presidential election in Nevada took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the 2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. State voters chose six electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, against Republican challenger and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 United States presidential election in New Hampshire</span>

The 2008 United States presidential election in New Hampshire took place on November 4, 2008, as part of the 2008 United States presidential election throughout all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Voters chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Democratic Party presidential primaries</span> Selection of the Democratic Party nominee

Presidential primaries and caucuses were organized by the Democratic Party to select the 4,051 delegates to the 2016 Democratic National Convention held July 25–28 and determine the nominee for President in the 2016 United States presidential election. The elections took place within all fifty U.S. states, the District of Columbia, five U.S. territories, and Democrats Abroad and occurred between February 1 and June 14, 2016. Between 2008 and 2024, this was the only Democratic Party primary in which the nominee had never been nor had ever become President of the United States. This was the first Democratic primary to nominate a woman for President.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 United States presidential election in Nevada</span>

The 2016 United States presidential election in Nevada was held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016, as part of the 2016 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Nevada voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, businessman Donald Trump, against the Democratic Party's nominee, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Nevada has six votes in the Electoral College.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses</span>

The 2016 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses was held on saturday February 20 in the U.S. state of Nevada, traditionally marking the Democratic Party's third nominating contest in their series of presidential primaries ahead of the 2016 presidential election. The Republican Party held its South Carolina primary on the same day, while their own Nevada caucuses took place on February 23.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Iowa Democratic presidential caucuses</span>

The 2020 Iowa Democratic presidential caucuses, the first nominating contest in the Democratic Party primaries for the 2020 presidential election, took place on February 3, 2020. Pete Buttigieg received the most state delegate equivalents (SDEs) and therefore the most delegates, with one SDE and two delegates more than Bernie Sanders, who had narrowly won the popular vote with 26.5%. It was the first time that the Iowa caucuses published the popular vote results of their contest. Buttigieg became the first openly gay person to ever earn the most delegates in a state's presidential contest in the United States. The Iowa caucuses were closed caucuses, wherein only registered members of a party were eligible to vote, and awarded 49 delegates to the 2020 Democratic National Convention, of which 41 were pledged delegates allocated on the basis of the results of the caucuses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses</span>

The 2020 Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses took place on February 22, 2020, with early voting on February 14–18, and was the third nominating contest in the Democratic Party primaries for the 2020 presidential election, following the New Hampshire primary the week before. The Nevada caucuses were a closed caucus, meaning that only registered Democrats could vote in this caucus. The state awarded 49 delegates towards the national convention, of which 36 were pledged delegates allocated on the basis of the results of the caucuses.

References

  1. ↑ "Nevada Caucus: Information Directory". Archived from the original on January 26, 2008.
  2. ↑ "Yucca Mountain prominent if Nevada Caucus moved up". July 25, 2006. Archived from the original on July 7, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
  3. ↑ Milligan, Susan (January 20, 2008). "Long battle still ahead for top Democrats: Contest could extend beyond Super Tuesday". Boston.com. The Boston Globe.
  4. ↑ NVdems Caucus - FAQ's Archived 2008-01-23 at the Wayback Machine
  5. 1 2 "Nvdemscaucus Kumpulan Resep Makanan Tradisional dan Modern - Kumpulan resep makanan terbaru dan terlengkap dari tradisional sampai modern di Indonesia serta manca negara" (PDF). February 6, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 6, 2008.
  6. ↑ Dems assign delegates for at-large precincts | Nevada Appeal | Serving Carson City, Nevada
  7. 1 2 "Nevada: Election Center 2008". CNNPolitics.com. 2008. Retrieved January 19, 2008.
  8. 1 2 Goldenberg, Suzanne (January 19, 2008). "Clinton and Obama seek to break deadlock in Nevada". Guardian Unlimited . London: Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved January 19, 2008.
  9. ↑ The Associated Press (January 9, 2008). "Obama gains key labor backing in Nevada". NBC News. Microsoft . Retrieved January 19, 2008.
  10. ↑ "Pollster.com". January 14, 2008. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
  11. ↑ Friess, Steve (January 12, 2008). "Teachers Sue to Block Hotel Workers' Union Vote in Nevada Caucus". The New York Times. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
  12. ↑ Friess, Steve (January 17, 2008). "Judge Allows Vegas Caucus Sites on the Strip". The New York Times. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
  13. ↑ "Court allows casino vote that may boost Obama". Reuters. January 17, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
  14. ↑ Cillizza, Chris (January 19, 2008). "Delegate Math: Who Won Nevada?". The Fix. Blog.washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on April 5, 2008. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  15. ↑ Clinton and Obama Win Nevada
  16. ↑ Obama Wins Most Nevada Delegates
  17. ↑ "Election Center 2008: Primary Results - Elections & Politics news from CNN.com". CNN. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
  18. 1 2 Falcone, Michael (January 17, 2008). "A Feisty Bill Clinton Defends Nevada Lawsuit". The New York Times. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
  19. 1 2 "The Field » Nevada: What Really Happened at the At-Large Caucuses?". Archived from the original on January 24, 2008.
  20. ↑ Daily Kos: What Really Happened at Nevada's At-Large Caucuses
  21. ↑ Coolican, J. Patrick; Michael Mishak (February 24, 2008). "Convention Ends in Chaos, So Dems Need a Do-over". Las Vegas Sun . Retrieved March 10, 2008.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.