Massive Turnout, Long Lines Show Democratic Enthusiasm at Nevada Caucus Early Voting Sites
Nevada Democrats are cheering the high turnout in the first two days of early voting of their state’s Democratic presidential caucuses, hoping that the strong participation will translate to enthusiasm for beating President Donald Trump in November.
The Nevada Democratic Party reported that over 11,800 voted on Saturday, the first of four days of early voting, leading up to the official caucus date of Saturday, February 22. To put that number in perspective, about 84,000 total Nevada Democrats caucused in 2016.
No comparable turnout numbers are available for the Republicans since the Nevada Republican Party voted to cancel their caucus to throw their support behind the incumbent Trump.
Long lines were reported at multiple locations, with wait times stretching to three-and-a-half hours.
One major factor contributing to the long lines was a new voting preference system. Caucus-goers were asked to pick at least three and up to five choices, ranked in order, on their ballots. State party rules required at least three choices to be made or the ballot would not be counted, although voters could chose “uncommitted” for their second and third votes after picking a candidate for their first vote.
On caucus day when the votes are tallied, any vote for any candidate not meeting the 15% “viability” threshold will be released and a vote counted for the next highest-ranked candidate on the ballot.
Something to watch for on Saturday: how many ballots are ruled invalid and tossed out because the voter did not vote for at least three ranked candidates, or select one or two candidates and mark down a vote for “uncommitted” to meet the three-choice minimum.
The Nevada caucus will be third contest in this year’s presidential primary battle, and is being monitored to see if the state follows the trends seen earlier this month in Iowa and New Hampshire, or if the state resets the Democratic primary yet again.
Former Vice President Joe Biden and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren are hoping to reverse a lackluster showing in the first two states, while other candidates like Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, and former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg seek to continue their momentum.
Meanwhile, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg has chosen to skip the first four primary states, focusing his attention — and his billions of dollars — on the Super Tuesday contests, where 1,357 delegates will be up for grabs. Nevertheless, Bloomberg’s self-financed campaign and heavy television ad rotation have boosted his profile with a number of Democratic primary voters, including some interviewed in the segment above by CNN’s Gary Tuchman. Bloomberg’s fellow billionaire, Tom Steyer, had also managed to secure some name recognition and support with his own television ad blitz.
Watch the video above, via CNN.
