Republicans are criticizing the Democratic Party’s decision to boot Iowa from its coveted first-in-the-nation spot on the presidential primary calendar, accusing the Left of disregarding voters in the Midwest by stripping the Hawkeye State of its long-held status.
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) called the decision not only to strip Iowa of its No. 1 slot but also to remove the state entirely from the early voting calendar disappointing, noting Republicans should not follow Democrats’ lead and instead keep their primary schedule as-is. The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee voted on a new early voting lineup on Friday, replacing the state in 2024 with South Carolina.
WHY DEMOCRATS CHOSE THESE FIVE STATES TO KICK OFF THEIR 2024 RENOMINATING CALENDAR
“Democrats have really given middle America the middle finger,” Ernst told Shannon Bream on Fox News Sunday.
The decision to update the lineup had been on Democrats’ minds for years, but the conversation received renewed attention after the 2020 caucuses in Iowa were crippled by technological difficulties that delayed the vote count for several days. Democrats also griped that because Iowa lacks diversity, it’s no longer representative of the U.S. population.
Ahead of a vote on the changes, President Joe Biden released his much-anticipated proposal for the 2024 presidential primary calendar on Thursday, requesting that South Carolina be chosen to host the first presidential primary, followed by Nevada and New Hampshire one week later, then Georgia, and finally Michigan. The proposal, which the DNC panel approved on Friday, removes Iowa from the mix altogether while adding a fifth state.
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The full DNC will have to vote on the nominating calendar sometime early next year, but the lineup is expected to be final.
The Republican National Committee voted earlier this year to reaffirm its presidential primary calendar, keeping its four-state lineup of Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada.
