Losing first-in-the-nation

Traditional Iowa news outlets are shrinking and have fewer resources to cover the Iowa caucuses. The remaining Republican presidential candidates make their case in the final weeks as misinformation blurs what potential caucusgoers know to be true.

Presidential candidates have been rewarded in the Iowa caucuses for spending a lot of time traveling the state and meeting with voters. That strategy doesn’t seem to be working for those running against former President Donald Trump in 2024. A runaway victory for the former president could mark a major shift for campaigns and could spell even more trouble for the future of the Iowa caucuses.

Former President Donald Trump’s first campaign for president was unlike anything Iowa caucus goers had experienced before. Many voters clung to his right-wing populist message and still support him as he runs for the White House a third time. His election in 2016 marked a clear shift in Iowa’s politics that’s still very present today.

Everything seemed to go well during the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses… until it came time to record the results. There was no momentum for any candidates on caucus night because of a faulty smartphone app. President Joe Biden had a poor showing and signaled the DNC to move Iowa back in the calendar ending the state’s coveted long held first-in-the-nation position.

Caucus Land returns for a limited-run second season. Our first of four episodes debuts Nov. 15. Here's a preview of Caucus Land ‘24.

The 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses devolved into chaos when the system for reporting results failed. Technical issues, human error and reporting inaccuracies delayed the outcome for days, and the repercussions are still playing out. On the twentieth episode of Caucus Land, we take a look at the app that broke the caucuses and how Iowa Democrats are responding.

What started as the largest and most diverse crop of Democratic presidential candidates in history has been cut down substantially ahead of the February 3rd Iowa caucuses. But it’s not just Iowa that’s winnowed the field. On the nineteenth episode of Caucus Land, we’ll talk about how we got here and what it could mean for the future of the Iowa caucuses.

Every four years, people have to basically relearn how the Iowa Democratic caucuses work. This year, a slate of new rules means caucus night could get even more confusing, and campaigns will have more ways than ever to spin the results out of Iowa. On the eighteenth episode of Caucus Land, we’ll break down what actually happens on February 3rd. Plus, conversations with two candidates: former Vice President Joe Biden and billionaire Tom Steyer.

There are plenty of critics of the Iowa caucuses. This year, there's pressure from insiders and outsiders to change the process. On the seventeenth episode of Caucus Land, we'll talk about why some of those changes haven't happened with Lauren Chooljian, a host of the New Hampshire Public Radio podcast Stranglehold. Plus, conversations with two candidates: former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg and entrepreneur Andrew Yang.

When Barack Obama ran for president in 2008, he defined marriage as “between a man and a woman." A decade later, that position would be almost unimaginable in this cycle’s Democratic presidential race. On the sixteenth episode of Caucus Land, we’ll talk about how the candidates are approaching LGBTQ policy. Plus, we’ll wade into the debate over whether Iowa is diverse enough to be first in the nation.