HOW TO FIND YOUR RESOLUTIONS AT CAUCUS SITE A CAUCUS Find Your Precinct Resolutions are issue proposals, brought by Go to https://bit.ly/305tu4b or contact your local county caucus participants, to be considered by the auditor. parties and added to the party’s platform at the county and district levels, and eventually on to Find Your Party’s Caucus Site

state and national levels. Democratic caucus sites are listed at

https://iowademocrats.org/2020-caucuses/

Resolutions are examples of grassroots or call 515-244-7292. advocacy at it’s best. From your individual precinct, the resolutions will be taken to the Republicans caucus sites are listed at county conventions and district conventions. https://www.iowagop.org/2020-caucus-locations There, the delegates elected from the precinct or call 515-282-8105. will vote on which resolutions to adopt onto the party platform. The party platform is made up of issues the parties plan to work on through ABOUT US the next year. This is a great way to tell party The ACLU of Iowa is a private, non-partisan leaders what issues are important to Iowans. organization that fights to advance civil liberties for Tips for Offering a Successful Resolution: all. It is the state affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU prides itself in upholding • Keep them short. At the county level everyone’s civil liberties, no matter who they are or and district levels, resolutions will what they believe. be consolidated together in similar categories. We work to assure the rights of all Iowans — from atheists to devout Christians, from labor unions • Provide detail. This way, when to businesspeople and more — to make sure the resolutions are consolidated, key issues constitutional rights of all are preserved. important to you can shine through. • Research other resolutions. If you’re drafting your own, look at what’s already out there or has been proposed in the past. You don’t have to recreate the wheel. FIRST IN THE NATION KNOW YOUR IOWA CAUCUS

505 5th Avenue, Suite 808 Des Moines, IA 50309-2316 [email protected]

www.aclu-ia.org 2020 Updated on January. 7, WHAT IS A CAUCUS CAUCUS TO CONVENTION Join Your Neighbors The Iowa caucuses are neighborhood meetings of the Precinct caucuses are just the first step in Iowa’s People will align in different parts of the room based major political parties. presidential nomination process. Caucuses are run on candidate preference. It is very public, and your by the major political parties (usually Republicans neighbors are going to know who you support. Iowa’s caucuses are the first in the nation, followed by and Democrats) and not by the state. Though they Undecided? the rest of the country’s caucuses and primaries. On are procedurally different, they both follow the same Monday, February 3, all eyes will be on Iowa! general pathway. If you’re still undecided on caucus night, that’s ok. There’s a place for the undecided, too. Just be Every two years, the parties hold these meetings • Precinct Caucuses: Happen at the neighborhood prepared to be persuaded. to discuss their platform and upcoming events. But level. Here, individuals indicate a preference for every four years, during the presidential elections, the president, elect delegates to represent their precinct Viability caucuses are also used to determine who the parties’ at the county level, and discuss resolutions. After people align into their candidate preference presidential nominee should be. • County Conventions: The delegates elected from groups, a count is taken. Each candidate must have Caucuses are not elections. They are the mechanism the precincts go to the County Conventions, vote on a certain number of supporters to remain “viable,” through which individuals show their support for a resolutions to be sent to the district level, and elect or to stay in the game. There’s an opportunity for candidate, and tell the parties what issues matter. delegates to go to the District Conventions and on to realignment, where people will try to persuade their the State Convention. neighbors to support their candidate. ISSUE ADVOCACY AT ITS BEST • District Conventions: Resolutions will be combined Counting and Delegates No state in the country does advocacy quite like Iowa. and sent up to the state party to become part of the A final count will be taken after the realignment, and platform. On Monday, February 3, Democrats and Republicans this determines how the party apportions and elects will hold caucuses in nearly 1,700 precincts across the • State Convention: Delegates come together, finalize delegates from the precinct to the county convention. the party platform, and send delegates to the national state. During the caucus, YOU have the opportunity to Resolutions speak up for issues that matter most to you. conventions. After the delegates are elected, the chair will conduct For civil libertarians, the caucuses are a powerful tool KEY FACTS party business, and open the floor to resolutions. to make sure our voice is heard. Attend a caucus, Though the parties run their caucuses differently, there make your opinions known, and maybe even introduce are some things that are the same for both: WHAT HAPPENS AT A a resolution! • You must be eligible to vote and be 18 years old by REPUBLICAN PARTY CAUCUS election day (November 3, 2020). Ballots • You must be registered with the party you’re To determine presidential candidate preference, caucusing with. You can do this at the caucus if a straw poll is taken. Paper ballots are distributed necessary. and each person writes down who they think should be the nominee. The ballots are counted, and the • Starts at 7:00 p.m. Be there early, because once the results are called into a central location. caucus starts, late-comers will not be allowed in. Delegates • Caucuses may last anywhere from an hour to several Delegates to the county convention will be elected hours. You can leave at any point. from those present at the caucus. Delegates are not WHAT HAPPENS AT A apportioned based on candidate preference. DEMOCRACTIC PARTY CAUCUS Resolutions After delegates are elected, the precinct chair Note: How the caucuses are run can vary somewhat each You will be asked to sign in. This is important for the election year. For the most current information, visit Democrats, because a count of people in attendance is will conduct party business, and open the floor to https://iowademocrats.org/2020-caucuses/ and necessary to apportion delegates. resolutions. https://www.iowagop.org/caucuses.