As Iowa grapples with the aftermath of a Democratic caucus that one party leader called a “systemwide disaster,” American voters and election officials are already looking ahead at the handful of other states and American territories that will be picking — or trying to pick — the Democratic nominee in similar ways.
The number of states that hold caucuses has been dwindling for years, in part at the encouragement of the Democratic National Committee to use a government-run primary. Kansas, Maine and Hawaii are among the latest states to opt for a primary system, which often allows more people to participate than caucuses.
In Iowa and elsewhere, caucuses have been criticized for typically taking place only for a few hours of the day and in venues away from a voter’s usual precinct. There were more than 1,600 precincts in Iowa on Monday, at schools, libraries, gymnasiums and other venues. There, Democrats gathered in groups to declare their support for one candidate or another — and to compete for undecided voters.
But, because state parties decide the rules of each system, not all caucuses work like Iowa’s. Some of the states that have kept their caucuses have made major changes to try to make them more inclusive.
Next up, Nevada
On Feb. 22, Nevada Democrats will hold their caucus, capping off four days of early voting that will start Feb. 15.
Democrats in Iowa have been criticized for holding the caucuses at night, a time that makes it harder for parents or people who work in the evenings to participate. They responded by setting up satellite caucuses.
In Nevada, the Democratic Party has added caucus sites to the back of casinos so casino employees working that day can participate. Republicans canceled their caucus in Nevada this year.
Democrats in the state are also providing caucus materials in Tagalog, in addition to English and Spanish, and are allowing people to vote early instead of having to participate in person.
But there is concern that Nevada, which has 48 delegates, could face some of the same problems Iowa faced Monday night, specifically trouble with an app that was supposed to tally and report results.
Democrats in Iowa used an app built by Shadow Inc., a for-profit technology company that was also used by the party in Nevada. On Tuesday, state party chairman William McCurdy II said it would not use the app or vendor.
Nevada Democrats, he said, “can confidently say that what happened in the Iowa caucus last night will not happen in Nevada.”
American Samoa
American Samoa, a U.S. territory since 1900, has 11 delegates and will hold its caucus March 3, which is Super Tuesday — when more than a dozen states vote in primaries.
A cluster of small islands that sit between Hawaii and New Zealand, American Samoa does not participate in the general election. In 2016, Democrats there picked Hillary Clinton, the eventual party nominee.
Republicans on the islands, who picked Donald Trump in 2016, will hold their caucus March 24.
North Dakota
The state Democratic Party on March 10 will hold a traditional “firehouse” style caucus, where voting takes place in an open area rather than in a closed polling booth.
But the party will also offer voters the chance to cast their ballots by mail as long as they are postmarked by March 3. The party picked Sen. Bernie Sanders in 2016.
Trump will be the only presidential candidate on the ballot for Republicans during the party’s caucus March 10.
The state Republican Party chairman, Rick Berg, told The Bismarck Tribune he expects the caucus to be “an evening of getting together with Republicans across the state.”
Wyoming
Democrats will hold their caucus in Wyoming on April 4, when, for the first time, voters will be able to rank their choices.
Voters will be allowed to rank up to five candidates instead of having to choose only one.
It is a system being piloted in Alaska, Hawaii and Kansas, and was first tried in Maine in 2018.
Like Nevada Democrats, registered voters do not have to show up to caucus sites to be counted. They can drop off their completed ballot or fill it out March 28. A total of 18 delegates are up for grabs in the primary.
Nina Sanchez Hebert, a spokeswoman for the Wyoming Democratic Party, said each caucus location would have a secure computer and Wi-Fi connection to transmit encrypted files, like ballots.
Paper ballots would be “securely retained” by county officials in case a hand count became necessary, she said. And officials would not employ the app created by Shadow Inc. to tally or report results.
“We are not using the same, or any, app to tabulate or transmit results,” Hebert said.
The majority of caucus voters picked Sanders as the Democratic nominee in 2016 and Trump as the Republican nominee. Republicans will pick their nominee by holding conventions.
Guam
Guam, an American territory in the Pacific Ocean, will hold its Democratic caucus May 2.
Democrats in the territory, which has 12 delegates, picked Clinton in 2016. Guam also does not participate in the general election.
Virgin Islands
Democrats in this U.S. territory will hold their caucus June 6. The territory has a total of 13 delegates and picked Clinton in 2016.
American citizens living in the Virgin Islands cannot vote in the general election.
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