ANSWER:
These are the same things being asked by other Fil-Ams who are voting for the first time or who are just wondering what the heck these caucuses and primary elections mean. Here's what I know:
First: what they had in New Hampshire where Hillary (for Democrat) and McCain (for Republican) won was not a caucus; it was actually a primary election. Sa Iowa yung caucus where Obama and Huckabee won.
Caucuses and primaries accomplish the same basic thing: They are used by each political party to let voters nationwide select their party's presidential nominee. Magkaiba lang sila ng implementation.
Ang caucus is sort of like a classroom election/barangay-level elections, while the primary elections are just like any other secret ballot election. Sa Iowa, they held several caucuses - depende sa dami ng counties (ang counties ay parang provinces sa atin, kumbaga). Sa Iowa Democratic caucuses, taasan ng kamay ang elections, at pwedeng mangampanya during the process.
The primaries and caucuses are used to select delegates (representatives of party members in each state) to send to the party's Presidential Nominating Convention.
Ang importance ng Iowa caucus is that, in the election season, it's the earliest to have any kind of voting process in an election year. It's the first time that the candidates and the public can see kung sinong kandidato o anong plataporma ang kinikilingan ng publiko.
So maraming publicity kasi well-covered ng media. Parang nagkakaroon ng momentum kung sinuman ang manalo dito kahit hindi naman nito ni-re-represent ang cross-section of the American voting public.
First: what they had in New Hampshire where Hillary (for Democrat) and McCain (for Republican) won was not a caucus; it was actually a primary election. Sa Iowa yung caucus where Obama and Huckabee won.
Caucuses and primaries accomplish the same basic thing: They are used by each political party to let voters nationwide select their party's presidential nominee. Magkaiba lang sila ng implementation.
Ang caucus is sort of like a classroom election/barangay-level elections, while the primary elections are just like any other secret ballot election. Sa Iowa, they held several caucuses - depende sa dami ng counties (ang counties ay parang provinces sa atin, kumbaga). Sa Iowa Democratic caucuses, taasan ng kamay ang elections, at pwedeng mangampanya during the process.
The primaries and caucuses are used to select delegates (representatives of party members in each state) to send to the party's Presidential Nominating Convention.
Ang importance ng Iowa caucus is that, in the election season, it's the earliest to have any kind of voting process in an election year. It's the first time that the candidates and the public can see kung sinong kandidato o anong plataporma ang kinikilingan ng publiko.
So maraming publicity kasi well-covered ng media. Parang nagkakaroon ng momentum kung sinuman ang manalo dito kahit hindi naman nito ni-re-represent ang cross-section of the American voting public.
Iowa has been described in news reports as a lily-white state - meaning, it's a state na hindi masyadong maraming immigrants like Latinos and Asians, unlike California. Ganun din ang demographics ng New Hampshire.
Ang susunod na inaabangan ngayon ay ang mga primaries where minorities, like us Pinoys, vote.
Bawat state gets to have caucuses or primary elections kaya lang unang-unang gumagawa ang Iowa ng caucus at ang New Hampshire ng primary elections kaya sila ang unang center of media attention.
Sa primary elections and caucuses, nade-determine ang state party's nominee for president, which it will present sa susunod na event - which is the Presidential Nominating Convention where each (Dem and Rep) party's delegates will select the party nominee.
The outcome decides kung sino ang magiging official na kandidato per party sa general elections, which will be held in November.
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