President Joe Biden has asked the Democratic National Committee to alter the presidential nomination calendar drastically for 2024. Notably, his proposal would remove Iowa from its coveted lead-off position by replacing the caucuses with the South Carolina primary, which would move up a few spots. Georgia and Michigan would be new additions to this early period. In addition to South Carolina, both New Hampshire and Nevada would retain their privileged early positions in the calendar, providing enhanced influence in the selection of the nominee.
The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee recently approved this proposal. As the full Democratic National Committee considers this proposal in February, it is important to consider the consequences of the proposal that makes it more complicated for voters and limits opportunities for meaningful participation.
We see two clear virtues in Biden’s proposal. The first is that the Democratic Party continues to move away from caucuses, particularly following Iowa’s difficulties in 2020. In 2016, 14 states held Democratic caucuses. In 2020, just three states utilized caucuses; the rest opted for primaries. Caucus participants need to be present at a specific time – so moving toward more primaries will give more voters a chance to participate. The gap in turnout between primary and caucus states is only likely to widen as states that utilize primaries can take advantage of vote-by-mail, early voting and other ideas that make voting easier.
