The Road to the White House Begins Tonight in Iowa With the Caucuses

After tonight, we should have a much clearer picture about which Republican candidates have a real shot at the White House. Today marks the official start of the presidential nomination process, as the Iowa caucuses are held. ‘We have a very consistent history of nominating the top three candidates within both parties, and usually it’s one of those candidates who go on and become the eventual nominee. So we don’t choose the president, but we do set the agenda,’ explained David Andersen, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at Iowa State University. The Iowa election process is unique in that candidates spend a lot of their time in small meetings with residents. ’So the voters of Iowa have this very unique opportunity to really talk to a candidate, and find out if a candidate truly knows what their talking about, do they truly believe in what they are saying on camera, or are they tending to read a script,’ said Andersen. Candidates also tailor their campaign messages to Iowans. ‘They stress agricultural issues, it’s a big deal here in Iowa. And we also have a very large Christian Evangelical community here in Iowa. So candidates will come here and stress those values,’ explained Andersen.