Archiv: Iowa Democratic Party


27.12.2020 - 06:35 [ Washington Post ]

How the Iowa caucuses came ‘crashing down,’ under the watchful eye of the DNC

(Feb. 16, 2020)

The DNC ordered and paid for a security audit of the software, which was completed by NCC Group, a Britain-based cybersecurity firm. Out of the review, which also involved threat assessment conducted with the national party as well as officials in Iowa and Nevada, came directions to guard the name of the vendor, and to take the software live as late as possible to prevent it from getting into the hands of hackers, according to multiple people who participated or had knowledge of the exercises.

27.12.2020 - 06:14 [ KCRG.com ]

County party chair thinks internal audit was too kind to Iowa Democratic Party

(Dec. 16, 2020)

After the caucus, the IDP hired a pair of Democratic lawyers: Nick Klinefeldt, who was a federal attorney appointed by President Barack Obama, and former Iowa Attorney General Bonnie Campbell. They were tasked with identifying and determining the cause of problems that occurred during the 2020 Iowa Caucuses, with the results of their investigation being released to the public on Saturday morning.

27.12.2020 - 06:10 [ Politico.com ]

Iowa autopsy report: DNC meddling led to caucus debacle

(12.12.2020)

The audit states the conversion tool had coding errors that spit out inaccurate numbers and caused confusion about the accuracy of the results, eventually leading to delays in reporting. But the state party’s app never malfunctioned nor was hacked, the report concludes.

27.12.2020 - 06:04 [ theIntercept.com ]

Investigator: DNC Was “Directly Involved” in Iowa Caucus App Development, Countering DNC Denial

(22.12.2020)

The DNC’s meddling, which included a last-minute demand that developers of the Shadow app create a special software that would allow the DNC real-time access to the raw numbers before they went public, didn’t sit well with Zogby.

“Why would [the DNC] need to see that?” Zogby said about the DNC’s insistence on access to the raw caucus results before they went public. “Why wouldn’t you trust the state party to make the determination?”

In the transcript from the closed-session meeting held by the state party, members suggested that the DNC’s goal was to strip Iowa of its prestigious first-in-the-nation status.

08.03.2020 - 15:27 [ Des Moines Register ]

‚We don‘t have time to correct every error‘: Iowa Democrats vote 26-14 to certify caucus results

(29.02.2020)

But the certification wasn‘t unanimous. Several members of the Iowa Democratic Party‘s state central committee, which acts as a governing board, argued that too many questions remain about the accuracy of the results.

The Associated Press has declined to call a winner in the race, citing „remaining concerns about whether the results as reported by the party are fully accurate.“

28.02.2020 - 12:44 [ @Weusedtoknowst1 / Twitter ]

The results are still unofficial: The state party must certify the results by Saturday, the day of the South Carolina primary. And the Sanders campaign says it has already asked the Democratic National Committee to step in and review the recount process in Iowa.

28.02.2020 - 12:37 [ BleedingHeartland.com ]

Iowa Democrats should not certify inaccurate caucus results

Ethan Corey and Daniel Nichanian have been pointing out for weeks that no one entered numbers from Des Moines County precinct 3 into the system. Corey spoke to a volunteer in the county who said that precinct had about 140 fewer caucus-goers than the official results (from the Winneshiek precinct) would suggest.

Bleeding Heartland flagged this issue in a post published on February 19. This week, I’ve repeatedly emailed IDP leaders trying to find out whether the party’s operating committee or SCC will direct someone to enter the proper numbers from Des Moines County precinct 3. I have received no reply whatsoever, not even “no comment.”

28.02.2020 - 12:33 [ Taniel / Twitter ]

(That error alone is nearly half of Sanders‘s current deficit.)

But I‘m not sure if this is a new error [as tweet above indicates] or if it was already here; it‘s already in my saved notes from a few iterations ago.

link to verify for yourself: https://results.thecaucuses.org

28.02.2020 - 12:29 [ @fathippy2 / Twitter ]

Can someone explain how they have recounted NL6/Madison (Johnson)?? They have literally reversed the recanvass and given the delegate back to Warren on 104 vs Sanders on 107??? They have even reduced Warren from 105 to 104 to boot!! Its half an SDE

28.02.2020 - 12:26 [ theHill.com ]

Delegate count unchanged after Iowa caucus recount completed

Recount administration recounted preference cards from 23 unique precincts, 14 requested by the Buttigieg campaign and 10 requested by the Sanders campaign, on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to a statement released by the Iowa Democratic Party.

The final state delegate equivalent totals have Buttigieg at 562.954 and Sanders at 562.021.

23.02.2020 - 15:55 [ Des Moines Register ]

Iowa Democrats to recount 23 caucus precincts in ongoing Bernie Sanders-Pete Buttigieg battle

The state party‘s recanvass/recount committee expects to begin the process on Tuesday and for it to last two days, the party‘s news release said.

19.02.2020 - 13:24 [ APnews.com ]

Bernie Sanders’ campaign to request recount of Iowa caucuses

Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign plans to ask for a partial recount of the Iowa caucus results after the state Democratic Party released results of its recanvass late Tuesday that show Sanders and Pete Buttigieg in an effective tie.

Sanders campaign senior adviser Jeff Weaver told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday that the campaign has had a representative in contact with the Iowa Democratic Party throughout the recanvass process.

19.02.2020 - 12:52 [ Jonathan Basile ‏/ Twitter ]

If these results stand Buttigieg would still get 14 national delegates (the ones that actually matter) to Bernie’s 12. Totally democratic system we have!

Bernie is still fighting that decision

19.02.2020 - 12:46 [ Nate Cohn ‏/ Twitter ]

Buttigieg lead in Iowa appears to fall to a mere 0.08 SDEs after recanvass Buttigieg 563.207 Sanders 563.127

19.02.2020 - 12:43 [ Politico.com ]

Buttigieg, Sanders separated by thousandths of a point after Iowa recanvass

Buttigieg now leads Sanders by .08 state delegate equivalents, according to results posted by the state party — 26.186 percent for Buttigieg to 26.182 percent for Sanders. The initial results were marred by apparent reporting or mathematical errors.

19.02.2020 - 12:41 [ kwwl.com ]

Iowa Democratic Party Announces Results of Official Recanvass Request

The recanvass results still have Pete Buttigieg at the top, getting 14 national delegates. He is closely followed by Bernie Sanders who will get 12.

17.02.2020 - 14:03 [ whotv.com ]

Iowa Democratic Party Begins Recanvass of Caucus Precincts

The party is expected to finish the recanvass by Wednesday. After that, candidates can request a recount.

17.02.2020 - 12:56 [ Taniel / Twitter ]

We‘re about to be two weeks away from the Iowa caucuses, & the IDP has still not released real results from likely 2 precincts; & only one of them is on the recanvass list, which makes it an open question whether some voters in Des Moines Co. will ever have their votes included.

(Official reason the Des Moines precinct not on list is that no campaign put it on theirs; based on what co-chair of Des Moines Co Dems told @CoatsandLinen
, real results wouldn‘t change Sanders/Buttigieg‘s gap. But issue is also IDP putting burden of corrections on campaigns.)

16.02.2020 - 14:14 [ John Panzer, Silicon Valley & California native / Twitter ]

“The DNC ordered and paid for a security audit of the software, which was completed by NCC Group, a Britain-based cybersecurity firm.

Out of the review, which also involved threat assessment conducted with the national party as well as officials in Iowa… … and Nevada, came directions to guard the name of the vendor, and to take the software live as late as possible to prevent it from getting into the hands of hackers, according to multiple people who participated or had knowledge of the exercises.”

16.02.2020 - 14:09 [ Washington Post ]

How the Iowa caucuses came ‘crashing down,’ under the watchful eye of the DNC

The DNC ordered and paid for a security audit of the software, which was completed by NCC Group, a Britain-based cybersecurity firm. Out of the review, which also involved threat assessment conducted with the national party as well as officials in Iowa and Nevada, came directions to guard the name of the vendor, and to take the software live as late as possible to prevent it from getting into the hands of hackers, according to multiple people who participated or had knowledge of the exercises.

16.02.2020 - 14:07 [ Des Moines Register ]

State Rep. Mark Smith to lead Iowa Democratic Party after Troy Price stepped down Saturday

On Wednesday, the state party announced it would honor recanvass requests from both Sanders and Buttigieg.

The recanvass, which begins Sunday and is expected to take two days, involves the party comparing and correcting inconsistencies between the official results reported from 143 precincts and satellite caucuses and what the party reported in its tabulations.

15.02.2020 - 14:12 [ Fiorella Isabel / Twitter ]

Do not stop pushing. Continue talking about Iowa and demand the campaign continue with their recanvass. When you’re going up against the establishment. Every delegate matters.

15.02.2020 - 14:04 [ Des Moines Register ]

Amid bickering over transparency, Iowa Democrats retain prominent attorneys to review caucus chaos

The party‘s State Central Committee, which acts as a governing board, approved up to $50,000 to retain attorneys Nick Klinefeldt, who was a federal attorney appointed by President Barack Obama, and former Iowa Attorney General Bonnie Campbell to conduct the investigation. Both are Democrats in Des Moines. Party officials hope the review will take 45 days or less.

15.02.2020 - 13:41 [ Taniel / Twitter ]

Marvelous NYT explanation of the myriad Iowa errors (with a beautiful lay-out). But the biggest & most simple error is missing: 2 precincts (in Decatur Co. & Des Moines Co.) still lack any real results, & are likely showing results of another precinct.

15.02.2020 - 13:25 [ New York Times ]

We Checked the Iowa Caucus Math. Here’s Where It Didn’t Add Up.

There has often been some fuzziness in the way the results of the Iowa caucuses were calculated and reported. But this is the first year that Iowa Democrats released raw vote counts. The transparency provided the public with its first opportunity to check the complex math that determines which candidates get the delegates they need to win the Democratic nomination.

And in many cases, the math did not check out. In such a close race — Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., is leading Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont by a tenth of a percentage point — even small mistakes can add up.

14.02.2020 - 12:55 [ Taniel / Twitter ]

..even with all that attention, the IDP still hasn‘t felt like it has to so much as acknowledge that it has yet to report the results of likely 2 precincts, which is absolutely bonkers,.or to fix their results we know don‘t conform to sheets.

14.02.2020 - 12:40 [ Yahoo News ]

Documents reveal DNC was ‚intimately involved‘ in development of troubled Iowa caucus app

The copies of Atwater’s email and Shadow’s contract with the IDP obtained by Yahoo News contained some redactions. Sources familiar with the original documents confirmed the authenticity of the copies. Atwater’s email was redacted to omit the name of the IDP official she communicated with. The Shadow contract was redacted to omit signatures and details about how much the company was paid by the IDP.

13.02.2020 - 18:56 [ LA Times ]

Iowa Democratic Party chairman resigns after caucuses chaos

After a breakdown in tallying the results on Feb. 3, it took until Feb. 6 for the state party, which operates the series of roughly 1,700 local meetings statewide, to issue what it said are complete results. In those figures, released by the party, former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg leads Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders by two state delegate equivalents out of 2,152 counted. That is a margin of 0.09 percentage points.

13.02.2020 - 18:55 [ CBS News ]

Troy Price resigns as head of Iowa Democratic Party after bungled caucuses

Troy Price has resigned as the chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party, CBS News has confirmed, after a bungled Iowa caucuses saga that has yet to yield any certified final results. Price made the announcement in a letter to the Iowa Democratic Party‘s State Central Committee.

13.02.2020 - 01:28 [ Taniel / Twitter ]

IDP count still likely lacks results of 2 precincts (but says „100%“). It has dozens of errors, at least one of which is *not* what math sheet shows. And yet: 1) It‘s CHARGING campaigns for a recanvass… 2) … that won‘t even cover all errors, incl. a likely missing precinct!

12.02.2020 - 20:35 [ Anne M. #NotMeUs / Twitter ]

Wait. Candidates have to pay for the recanvass because the Iowa Democratic Party screwed up the process and the results? That seems unfair, to say the least.

12.02.2020 - 20:24 [ theHill.com ]

Iowa Democratic Party says it plans to begin recanvass of caucus results on Sunday

The party is expected to provide the campaigns with details related to the timeline of the recanvass and the costs for which campaigns will be responsible. After that, the campaigns will have 24 hours to decide whether they want to proceed with the recanvass.

Once the process begins Sunday, the party said, it is expected to last for two days.

12.02.2020 - 13:54 [ Taniel / Twitter ]

The IDP results are still riddled with errors. They are mathematically incoherent. In some cases they don‘t conform to what local precincts are reporting. They can claim what they want. Thankfully, the press isn‘t bound to just account. That‘s where we come in. Let‘s dig in.

(10.02.2020)

12.02.2020 - 13:50 [ New York Times ]

Faulty Iowa App Was Part of Push to Restore Democrats’ Digital Edge

(04.02.2020)

Still, when Iowa Democrats, on the advice of the national party, abandoned plans to have caucus results called in by phone because of security concerns and instead build an app, they chose Shadow from multiple bidders, according to a state party official.

12.02.2020 - 13:27 [ Cybertalk.org ]

Tele-voting gets a veto

(03.09.2019)

“We concur with the advice of the DNC’s security experts that there is no tele-caucus system available that meets our standard of security and reliability given the scale needed for the Iowa and Nevada caucuses and the current cyber-security climate,” says Tom Perez, Lorraine Miller, and Jim Roosevelt, of the DNC Rules and By-Laws Committee, in a joint statement.

11.02.2020 - 11:10 [ theHill.com ]

Iowa Democratic Party chairman ‚disappointed‘ by Perez‘s caucus criticism

“Obviously I was very disappointed by the chairman’s comments,” Price told reporters at a press conference after he was asked whether Perez had thrown him and the Iowa Democratic Party “under the bus.” “You know this has been a full partnership with the DNC this entire time.”

“What I will say is we’ve got a job to do and that is to finish up this process,” he continued. “There’s going to be a time to assign blame, but I will tell you the DNC has been a partner in this process up to, including and after caucus night.”

11.02.2020 - 11:03 [ Real Clear Politics ]

DNC Chairman Tom Perez Blames Iowa Democratic Party For Caucus Disaster: „What Happened Was Unacceptable“

(07.02.2020)

During an interview on CNN Friday morning, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez sidestepped blaming the national party for the mess that happened during Monday‘s Iowa caucus, saying: „Well, again, the Iowa Democratic Party runs the caucus. Okay? And they — what happened was unacceptable.“

11.02.2020 - 10:27 [ The Hill / Youtube ]

Election Expert Warns Media: Don‘t trust Iowa caucuses results

Editor of The Appeal: Political Report expands on the latest results in Iowa following a recanvass.

10.02.2020 - 18:35 [ Reid J. Epstein / Twitter ]

And the results @iowademocrats finally posted online? A @UpshotNYT review found at least 10% had improperly allocated delegates – mistakes in all 99 counties. But signed precinct worksheets are final documents — they can‘t be fixed in a recanvass.

10.02.2020 - 18:30 [ Reid J. Epstein / Twitter ]

It took three days for Iowa Democratic Party volunteers to check all the caucus results worksheets that arrived by email. One results page didn‘t reach Des Moines until Thursday — it had been sent through the Postal Service.

10.02.2020 - 18:27 [ Bleeding Heartland ]

Iowa Democrats need new state chair–and new attorney

A February 6 written statement from Price acknowledged that the reporting problems on caucus night “were unacceptable.” What he went on to say raised red flags (emphasis added):

“Should any presidential campaign in compliance with the Iowa Delegate Selection Plan request a recanvass, the IDP is prepared. In such a circumstance, the IDP will audit the paper records of report, as provided by the precinct chairs and signed by representatives of presidential campaigns. This is the official record of the Iowa Democratic caucus, and we are committed to ensuring the results accurately reflect the preference of Iowans.”

What about those dozens of precincts where the official record submitted by the precinct chair did not accurately reflect the preference of caucus-goers in the room, because one candidate received too many or not enough delegates?

IDP leaders decided to stick with the flawed official record.

10.02.2020 - 11:51 [ CNN ]

Buttigieg gets the most delegates and Sanders comes in second, Iowa Democratic Party says

With these updates in place, Pete Buttigieg holds a 0.1% lead over Bernie Sanders in the state delegate equivalent count, which determines the winner of the Iowa caucuses. That margin is unchanged from the previously announced results.

If there are no requests to recanvass or recount, Buttigieg would be the winner of the Iowa caucuses. According to the Iowa Democratic Party, he will claim 14 delegates. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders will receive 12,

09.02.2020 - 12:01 [ CBS News ]

Iowa Democratic Party reviewing reported inconsistencies in 95 precincts

The party received reports from the campaigns of Bernie Sanders, Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren.

Following a chaotic delay, due in part to a new app used to report the results of the Iowa caucuses, results from 100% of precincts finally came in late Thursday, three days after the caucuses. No national delegates have been awarded yet, however, pending review of the results.