DNC chair says party will 'absolutely' have a conversation about the future of Iowa's leadoff status

(Image credit: Screenshot/CNN)

last updated 9 February 2020

Iowa might be knocked from its perch next election cycle.

Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday the Democratic Party will have a "conversation" about Iowa's role as the first state to vote in the primaries going forward after the 2020 Democratic caucus turned chaotic, suggesting it may move down the lineup in the future.

But Perez acknowledged there's not much he can do about the state's decision to hold a caucus instead of a primary. "One of the challenges and the reason we didn't do that in our most recent conversation about this is that you need to pass a state law to have a state-run primary," Perez said during his appearance on State of the Union. "There are some states that still have caucuses where I'm not sure the Republican governor would sign the law to have the election."

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.

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