{"id":28126,"date":"2020-02-13T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-13T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/?p=28126"},"modified":"2020-02-13T13:58:29","modified_gmt":"2020-02-13T18:58:29","slug":"the-iowa-caucus-chaos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/tartan-news\/2020\/02\/13\/the-iowa-caucus-chaos\/","title":{"rendered":"The Iowa Caucus Chaos"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap wp-block-paragraph\">During the first week of February, the drama surrounding the Iowa caucus became a big headache for the Democrats and left seeds of doubt about in the minds of some voters in regards to result legitimacy leading up to last week&#8217;s New Hampshire primary.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In what was expected to be a several-hour tallying of the votes, the results were instead released partially over the course of four stress-filled days due to errors and technicalities which ultimately ended with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg locked in a virtual tie for first.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the night of Feb. 3, the results came in slowly, leading to some slight concern. Several hours into the polling, it was suddenly announced that the mobile app being used to deliver the voting results from each precinct to the Iowa Democratic Party (IDP) was malfunctioning due to coding issues, leading to widespread anger, ire and ridicule directed at both the IDP and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) on Twitter.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Soon afterward, with barely 2% of the votes having been counted as they showed Buttigieg with a narrow first-place lead over Sanders, the South Bend mayor went onstage in Des Moines and delivered a speech to his supporters, saying \u201cWe don\u2019t know all the results, but we know\u2014by the time it\u2019s all said and done\u2014Iowa, you [will] have shocked the nation. Because, by all indications, we are going into New Hampshire victorious.\u201d<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yQDsB75s7EA?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><figcaption>Buttigieg&#8217;s premature victory claim led to much criticism online. (Source: QuickTake by Bloomberg\/YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Buttigieg\u2019s comments drew major criticism in the hours that followed. Many online were angry that he had chosen to give a speech alluding toward victory as the results had all but barely been revealed. Later on, the DNC issued a statement saying that they were stepping in to help the IDP with the count to ensure \u201cquality control.\u201d<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As time went on and the caucuses came up on day two with only 60% of the polling done, the app being used to report the results was put under the media\u2019s <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"microscope (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/2020\/02\/04\/iowa-caucus-app-shadow-acronym\/\" target=\"_blank\">microscope<\/a>.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reports revealed that in addition to the source code showing signs of sloppiness according to cybersecurity experts, the app was found to have two fundamental flaws. Firstly, the voting results that it reported back to the IDP were vastly different than what was initially recorded prior to being sent off. Secondly, the process used to download the app for testing prior to the caucuses proved difficult for many users.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because it was not able to be downloaded via an app store, caucus managers with Apple devices had to first download a separate app that would then allow for beta versions of the vote reporting app to be sent to the users\u2019 phone. For Android users, specific device settings had to be changed before the app could be downloaded.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There were reports of people having difficulty signing in to the app and according to Massachusetts-based security firm Veracode, the app\u2019s security <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.propublica.org\/article\/the-iowa-caucuses-app-had-another-problem-it-could-have-been-hacked\" target=\"_blank\">was so insecure<\/a> that everything from vote totals to passwords could have been easily altered or accessed due to its hacking vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The Iowa Democratic Party\u2019s two-day delay in releasing the full results of the Iowa caucuses is a &quot;catastrophe,\u201d says <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/theintercept?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@theintercept<\/a> reporter <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lhfang?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@lhfang<\/a>. &quot;This is a dark day for small &#39;d&#39; democracy, and a very bad omen for capital &#39;D,&#39; the Democratic party.\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/m6hNwndFiH\">pic.twitter.com\/m6hNwndFiH<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Democracy Now! (@democracynow) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/democracynow\/status\/1225047215716159489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 5, 2020<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><figcaption>The Intercept&#8217;s Lee Fang discussing the issues and suspicions surrounding the faulty app on the independent progressive news outlet Democracy Now! (Source: @demoncracynow\/Twitter) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Related Article:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"President Trump Acquitted of Impeachment (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/culture\/2020\/02\/10\/current-news-trump-acquitted-of-impeachment\/\" target=\"_blank\">President Trump Acquitted of Impeachment<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>As hours passed, nerves were at an all-time high. With the results coming in at a snail pace, Buttigieg held a technical lead over Sanders due to being up by three delegates. Iowa\u2019s delegate-based voting system is similar to the electoral college.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Feb. 6, with 97% of the results in and him holding a strong lead in the popular vote, Sanders took to the stage in Manchester, New Hampshire and gave a speech declaring himself to be Iowa\u2019s winner.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhere I come from, the person who gets the most votes wins,\u201d Sanders said.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0ab2pXzuZHI?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><figcaption>A snippet of Sanders&#8217; post-Iowa speech. (AFP News Agency\/YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At noon that same day, DNC head Tom Perez tweeted \u201cEnough is enough. In light of the problems that have emerged in the implementation of the delegate selection plan and in order to assure public confidence in the results, I am calling on the Iowa Democratic Party to immediately begin a recanvass,\u201d a follow up to an earlier tweet in which he informed the public that the DNC would be \u201cworking around the clock to assist the Iowa Democratic Party to ensure that all votes are counted,\u201d due to the reporting errors.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-twitter aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Enough is enough. In light of the problems that have emerged in the implementation of the delegate selection plan and in order to assure public confidence in the results, I am calling on the Iowa Democratic Party to immediately begin a recanvass.<\/p>&mdash; Tom Perez (@TomPerez) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TomPerez\/status\/1225468833458245632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 6, 2020<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><figcaption>(Source: @TomPerez\/Twitter)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Afterward, Perez received thousands of tweets calling for his resignation along with many claiming that Perez and the DNC were <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GravelInstitute\/status\/1225495231400960001\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">manipulating the polling results<\/a>. Many were also curious as to why the satellite caucuses that Sanders was projected to win (key areas with high minority demographics, which would have netted him several more delegates and pushed Sanders to the top of the poll) hadn\u2019t yet been reported despite 97% of the polling having been done already.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a number of hours, as Buttigieg vaguely claimed victory and received lots of media attention,\u201c#TomPerezResign\u201d and \u201c#BernieWonIA\u201d were the top trending hashtags on Twitter.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As of this writing, despite 100% of the precincts being accounted for after four days of outrage, no official result has been given. Due to the irregularities in the polling results, The Associated Press <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/4f9044fe46f551d397d48dd8ca3d58db\" target=\"_blank\">announced<\/a> that they would not be declaring a victor. Currently, Buttigieg leads Sanders in number of pledged delegates by 13-12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Quinton Bradley<\/strong><br>Contributing Writer<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Quinton Bradley is an Ohio-based writer. He runs a blog called<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/hammersandpapyrus.wordpress.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\"><em> Hammers and Papyrus<\/em><\/a><em> and can be followed on Twitter<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/QBAbstract\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\"><em> @QBAbstract<\/em><\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During the first week of February, the drama surrounding the Iowa caucus became a big headache for the Democrats and left seeds of doubt about in the minds of some voters in regards to result legitimacy leading up to last week&#8217;s New Hampshire primary. In what was expected to be a several-hour tallying of the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10416,"featured_media":28132,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[3327,3,3393],"tags":[3382,3367,3371,3999,2905],"class_list":["post-28126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","category-tartan-news","category-u-s-news","tag-2020-election","tag-bernie-sanders","tag-democrats","tag-pete-buttigieg","tag-quinton-bradley"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"cc_featured_image_caption":{"caption_text":false,"source_text":false,"source_url":false},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5s3vR-7jE","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Steve-Kornacki-Feb-5.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28126","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10416"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28126"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28126\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28170,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28126\/revisions\/28170"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28126"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28126"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sinclairclarion.com\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28126"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}