Des Moines Register Calls for Audit of Democrat Party Results in Iowa
After Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton's razor-thin win over rival Bernie Sanders in the Iowa caucuses Monday, the Des Moines Register is now calling for an audit of the results.
Noting in an Thursday editorial titled "Something smells in the Democratic Party," the paper declared that "once again the world is laughing at Iowa," and summed up the Democratic caucuses Monday as a "debacle."
"What happened Monday night at the Democratic caucuses was a debacle, period. Democracy, particularly at the local party level, can be slow, messy and obscure. But the refusal to undergo scrutiny or allow for an appeal reeks of autocracy," said the Register.
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Clinton claimed victory in the Iowa caucuses Tuesday with 49.9 percent of the votes to Sanders' 49.6 percent. There has also been some confusion about how much of a role coin flips played in determining who won delegates, according to a CNN report.
"The Iowa Democratic Party must act quickly to assure the accuracy of the caucus results, beyond a shadow of a doubt," said the Register in the editorial. "The results were too close not to do a complete audit of results.Two-tenths of 1 percent separated Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. A caucus should not be confused with an election, but it's worth noting that much larger margins trigger automatic recounts in other states."
The paper further noted that even from its own observation of the caucus proceedings, a number of problems created "opportunities for error."
"Too many accounts have arisen of inconsistent counts, untrained and overwhelmed volunteers, confused voters, cramped precinct locations, a lack of voter registration forms and other problems. Too many of us, including members of the Register editorial board who were observing caucuses, saw opportunities for error amid Monday night's chaos," said the paper.
While the local arm has refused to go over the caucus results, the Register suggested that the caucuses have become outdated and the voting system needs to be updated.
"Democrats should ask themselves: What do we want the Iowa caucus to be? How can we preserve its uniqueness while bringing more order? Does it become more like a straw poll or primary? How do we strike the balance between tradition and transparency?" the paper asked.
It then ended: "We have time to consider these questions. First, however, we need answers to what happened Monday night. The future of the first-in-the-nation caucuses demands it."
