Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said in a statement to news outlets Sunday "it's time for the Democratic Party to move to primaries everywhere" and ditch the caucus system.
Why it matters: Reid remains the functional head of the Nevada Democrats. He's also "responsible for Nevada's caucuses occupying the third slot on the Democrats’ presidential nominating calendar," the New York Times notes.
New: Harry Reid, the architect of Nevada’s caucuses going 3rd in nation, calls for an end to all caucuses.
— Shira Tarlo (@shiratarlo) February 24, 2020
“I believe it’s time for the Democratic Party to move to primaries everywhere,” he said in statement, adding that Nevada should be the first state to vote. pic.twitter.com/WCHWXAqP0N
The big picture: The Iowa Democratic Party chairman resigned this month after software failures and reporting errors delayed caucus results, prompting requests by the Former Southbend Mayor Buttigieg and Sen. Bernie Sanders campaigns for a partial recanvass. Sanders requested Tuesday a recount of those recanvass results.
- There were also complaints of the organization of the caucuses in Nevada.
- Buttigieg asked the Nevada State Democratic Party to release early vote and in-person vote totals by precinct and address certain caucus errors identified by campaigns.
Of note: Per the NYT, "The Democratic National Committee will not take up the matter of which states will get to go first in the next presidential contest until at least 2021, and no vote on the issue is likely until 2022." But Reid remains an influential figure in the Democratic Party.
Go deeper: ACRONYM co-founder Tara McGowan on Iowa caucus app
