Black Hawk County Republicans Plan Big Caucus Event

By Hannah Hess
IowaPolitics.com

IOWA CITY — All seven GOP presidential candidates competing in Iowa will be in Black Hawk County on the night of the caucus, if all goes according to county-level leaders' plans.

The Black Hawk County Republicans envision hosting a caucus kick-off event on Jan. 3 in Cedar Falls, preceding the 7 p.m. precinct caucuses. Candidates are expected to address an estimated 5,000 Black Hawk County voters in the McLeod Center, University of Northern Iowa's basketball arena.

National news networks want to televise the "first-class event," said Black Hawk County GOP Chairman Mac McDonald, who has spearheaded a 25-member planning committee for the past six weeks.

After the kick-off, voters from all 63 county precincts will head to the neighboring UNI-Dome to choose which Republican they want to see atop the national ballot.

McDonald predicted the gathering will be the largest caucus in the state, and cost a pretty penny. Renting facilities and arranging sound and video equipment will cost the county GOP about $60,000, he said.

None of the candidates have confirmed their appearance at the Republican caucus.

"Normally what happens is that your candidates who are competing vigorously will make an appearance at one of the larger media markets," said Rich Schwarm, a former Republican Party of Iowa chairman and longtime political insider. "From my recollection, I don't recall more than two candidates being at any one location."

Schwarm said this would be a good year to have all candidates in one place because, unlike most election cycles, voters may be undecided on the night of the caucuses.

Black Hawk County Republicans need a well-organized, energized caucus this year, because they are still "living in the shadows of the 2008 caucus," McDonald said.

That year, the GOP caucus was held at a local middle school. Parking was sparse and blizzard conditions prevented an estimated 2,000 people from voting.

For 2012, McDonald said he is determined to ensure every Republican in the county has an opportunity to vote — and bring some fresh faces to the party caucus. He said fiscally conservative independents could be persuaded to join the Republican party.

"There are more independent voters here than there are Republicans or Democrats, so we're trying to energize the independents to really get active and think about switching their affiliation," McDonald said.

The county is home to 131,090 people, Iowa's fourth most populous, according to figures from the 2010 U.S. census.

Among active voters, 20,554 are registered Republicans, 29,384 are Democrats and 30,914 claim no party, according to Iowa's secretary of state. Caucus-goers can register as Republicans on the night of the caucus if they want to participate.

Democrats who are concerned with federal tax policy and the constitutionality of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a law that requires all Americans to carry health insurance, also may be interested in the GOP field, said Republican Women of Black Hawk County President Iann Veldhuizen.

"Right here we're very fortunate, and we don't have to worry so much about unemployment, and we haven't been hit by the housing crisis," she said, "but I think tax issues and (the federal health care law) has everyone really concerned."

Unemployment in Black Hawk County hit 5.5 percent in September, according to the most recent figures available from the Iowa Workforce Information Network, compared to 6 percent in Iowa and 9.1 percent nationally.

Veldhuizen said the Republican Women of Black Hawk County, a grassroots political organization that works to inform voters about GOP objectives, would be among the 200 volunteers on Jan. 3 working to keep Black Hawk County's caucuses organized.

Part of the energy for the Republican vote comes from having a hometown candidate in the contest, Veldhuizen said.

Minnesota U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann announced her candidacy June 27 to a crowd of 500 during a "welcome home" rally in Black Hawk County. She was born in Waterloo and lived there until she was in the sixth grade.

The town became the center of the Republican political universe again Aug. 14, when Texas Gov. Rick Perry swooped in for the county GOP's annual Lincoln Day Dinner, one day after announcing his candidacy during an event in Charleston, S.C. More than 121 political reporters, including national and international media, sought credentials for the event, McDonald said.

Democrats in Black Hawk County will gather Jan. 3 at Central Middle School in Waterloo, said Chairman Pass Sass, who predicted a good turnout from Democratic voters who want to re-elect President Barack Obama.

She said Democratic voters in her county are excited and believe Obama "is doing a fantastic job compared to all those tea party people."