DES MOINES — Jennifer and Jason Pickering came to Andrew Yang’s Fairfield Friday night town hall decked in Yang hats, pins and stickers. The married couple drove more than two hours from Ames to see Yang speak alongside Marianne Williamson.
Jason Pickering used to support President Donald Trump before he found Yang. He doesn’t see himself backing Trump again, but he also doesn’t see himself backing any other Democrat.
“He’s the only one that’s honest, that is actually offering solutions,” Pickering said. “There’s no one else in the party I would support — he’s the only politician I trust there.”
In Iowa, picking one candidate isn’t necessarily enough in a Democratic caucus in Iowa. A candidate has to get at least 15% support in any given precinct for that candidate to make it to a second and final vote. It is that final vote that will determine each candidate’s delegate strength.
A supporter of Andrew Yang, Democratic presidential candidate, cheers during a rally to kick-off his bus tour across the state on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2019, on the steps of the Iowa State Capitol. (Photo: Kelsey Kremer/The Register)
That means many caucusgoers will go into their precincts Monday with a first and second-choice candidate, just in case their first choice doesn’t make it through.
But some diehard supporters say that if their top choice doesn’t make it through the first round at their precinct, they’re just going home.
Jennifer Pickering, 48, said she has never voted. She’s now a precinct captain for Yang, an entrepreneur who has won fans for his upbeat attitude and proposal to guarantee every adult citizen $1,000 a month.
If Yang doesn’t make it through the first vote, she said she won’t pick a second choice on caucus night — or in the November 2020 general election.
“No, we’ll write-in Yang,” she said. “We are hardcore, only 100% Yang. We’re actually trying to do this thing where we see how many people would do a signature for Yang, because we will not do anybody else.”
But others are ready to make second choices. Mike Poe, a 65-year-old retired factory worker in Marshalltown, said he’s got two top candidates.
“I’ve got one I really, really like,” Poe said. Poe’s favorite candidate is Tom Steyer, who he’s seen three times. But Poe is also aware that Steyer does not have much support in Iowa, based on recent polling.
“But I don’t think he’s going to make it, so I’ve got to get down to the person I think can actually win the deal,” he said. “If it doesn’t work for Steyer, I’m going to go with Joe” Biden, the former vice president. “Yes, he’s my second choice. … and I may even just start out there.”
2:16 p.m. — Former Vice President Joe Biden speaks on Jan. 18, 2020 at Simpson College's Pfeiffer Hall. (Photo: Olivia Sun/The Register)
Kristi Marchesani, a 46-year-old Cedar Falls resident, attended a Joe Biden rally at the University of Iowa campus Monday sporting a “Pete 2020” button. She said she’s decided to caucus for the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor but is mulling over what she would do if he doesn’t meet the viability threshold in her precinct.
“I’ve thought about it a million times and I have a lot of different philosophies,” she said. “Biden is a possibility. Hearing him today helps me feel better about him. He definitely translates really well in person. He’s really likable. But I really like (Massachusetts U.S. Elizabeth) Warren, who’s a very different candidate. So it’s kind of crazy to be supporting different candidates for different reasons. So those would probably be the two that I would consider on the night.”
Jules Bacon and Jan Belisle, while waiting for U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to speak on behalf of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders in Marshalltown on Saturday, were talking about Warren’s claim that Sanders told her a woman couldn’t win the White House. (Sanders strongly denied the claim. He has said he had warned that a woman would face a torrent of sexist and misogynistic attacks from Trump.)
Mike Posner speaks at a canvass launch event before door knocking for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, Friday, Jan. 24, 2020, in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo: Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen)
It was “dirty politics” from Warren’s team, Bacon and Belisle agreed. Belisle dropped Warren from a No. 1 spot in favor of Sanders. But it didn’t drop Warren from their radar.
“It felt good when they were kind of on the same page. They were friends, they were competing, but in a nice way. And then that came out and it was, ‘Ooh, gross,’ ” said Bacon, a professor at Grinnell College.
But, Warren was still closest to Sanders in terms of policy. The recent dispute between the candidates made their opinions of Warren drop significantly, but both Bacon and Belisle said Warren is their second choice.
Luke Rogers, a 38-year-old Fairfield resident, said he’s planning to caucus for Yang and is building up the courage to go volunteer for him.
He isn’t ruling out caucusing for another candidate on Feb. 3 if Yang doesn’t hit 15% at his precinct, but he isn’t committed yet.
“I would like to see Andrew get at least 15% in Iowa for the caucus,” Rogers said. “So if I can help reach that goal, build that momentum for New Hampshire and all the other states, so be it. Yeah, I don’t really see myself changing to Bernie, even though he’s my second choice right now.”
Robin Opsahl covers political trends for the Register. Reach them at [email protected] or 515-284-8051.
Contributing: Brianne Pfannenstiel, Stephen Gruber-Miller and Nick Coltrain contributed to this story.
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