Iowa in perspective

Let’s put Iowa in perspective.

Iowa state population is 2,982,085 or about 1% of America’s 303,619,006 total population.

Of the 2.9 million Iowans about 2.3 million are voting of voting age or about .7% of the total American population.

Of those of voting age, given a generous turnout of 250,000, about 10%, of Iowans will participate in tonight’s caucus. (Note: Most news agencies say turnout among eligible voters is usually about 6%.) Anyway voters in Iowa will constitute about .08% of the total American population.

If the vote is divided equally among Dems and Reps, or about 125,000 each, .04% of the total American population will be choosing candidates for the major parties.

If polling is correct that it’ll take about one third of that vote to win the caucus, or about 42,000 votes. So, about .014% of Americans are choosing Iowa’s delegates to the two major conventions.

Iowa’s 56 Dem delegates comprise just over 1% of the 4,366 total Dem delegates. The 40 Rep delegates will comprise just over 1% of the total 2,509 total Rep delegates.

Then there are the vagaries of voting in the caucus system. It’s not a vote where you get up early. Drive to your designated polling place. Cast your vote in five minutes and go to work – if you’re a Rep. If you’re Dem, you get on a bus at about four in the afternoon and drive from polling place to polling place casting multiple votes and bitching about the long lines caused by several Dem buses pulling up to the same polling place at the same time.

In the caucuses you have to go some guys house at 6:30 pm and be brow beaten by some loudmouth Pol for a couple of hours before casting your ballot – Dem votes are public and like all Dem votes, you get to vote several times.

It’s nuts. But the MSM is agog over the process because they think it gives them an opportunity to pick the winners. But, given the numbers and the process, this vote should not mean much of anything.