Where are you caucusing? Are you sure? I’m going to chance risking copywrite violation because, for some reason, I think, I think they’ll approve that this gets posted.
From the Colorado Democratic Party website:
Caucus 2016Click here to find your caucus location.
What is caucus?
Caucuses are fundamentally neighborhood meetings. You gather at the location designated for your precinct with other Democrats, vote for your preferred candidate and elect delegates to your county Convention and Assembly.
Caucuses are the first step in a multi-step process of nominating candidates and selecting delegates to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in July 2016. The steps and dates are: Precinct Caucus, March 1, 2016; County Convention and Assembly, held between March 2 and March 26, 2016; Congressional District Convention and Assembly, held between April 1 and April 15, 2016; and the State Convention and Assembly, April 16, 2016.
Caucuses are also where we elect Precinct Committee People (PCPs) and work on resolutions, which is the first step in drafting our party platform.
What exactly happens at caucus?
First, you show up at your caucus site and sign in at your precinct. At 7:00 the fun begins. We start with the Pledge of Allegiance, then read the rules aloud so everyone understands the process. Sometimes candidates are given an opportunity to make a quick speech; sometimes they visit each individual precinct; sometimes they are at a different site.
Each precinct elects a designated number of delegates to your county Assembly and Convention. Delegates are elected by candidate preference, so each caucus takes a preference poll. Everyone votes for their preferred candidate. A candidate must get at least 15% of the vote in order to receive any delegates. Lets assume you have 20 people at your caucus, and your precinct elects 10 delegates. Candidate W receives 1 vote; Candidate X receives 2 votes; Candidate Y receives 14 votes; and Candidate Z receives 3 votes. Candidates W and X will not receive any delegates since they did not meet the 15% threshold. Candidate Y will receive 7 delegates and Candidate Z will receive 3 delegates. Candidate Y's supporters vote amongst themselves to elect their 7 delegates. Candidate Z's supporters vote amongst themselves to elect their 3 delegates. Candidate W and X's supporters can try to get elected as Candidate Y or Z's delegates. (The math isn't too tricky, and we'll give your county party a worksheet to make it easier.)
After you complete the Presidential Preference Poll to allocate and select delegates to your county Convention, you go through the same process to allocate and select delegates to your county Assembly. The preference poll for your county Assembly will be the highest, contested state-wide race. Currently that is the CU Regent At-Large race. Some precincts may decide to elect the same people to be Convention and Assembly delegates.
Your precinct will also elect two Precinct Committee People and draft and vote on resolutions, which is the first step in drafting our party platform.
What's the difference between a County Assembly and a County Convention?
County Conventions and County Assemblies are two separate meetings, but they are held at the same time on the same date. A Convention is used exclusively for nominating a Presidential candidate and delegates. An Assembly is used for all other nominations (U.S. Senate, Colorado State House, County Commissioners...)
Who can participate in caucus?
In order to vote at caucus, you must be:
A resident of your precinct for at least 30 days. Registered to vote no later than 29 days before the caucus. Affiliated with the party holding the caucus for at least 2 months before the caucus.Anyone who turns 18 or becomes a naturalized U.S. Citizen and registered to vote during the two months prior to March 1, 2016 is eligible to vote.
Anyone is welcome to show up at caucus and observe. If space is tight, visitors might be grouped against a wall.
When and where is caucus?
Caucus will be March 1, 2016 at 7:00 pm.
Locations will be determined by your local county Democratic Party and should be in or around your neighborhood. We will publish caucus locations in February.
How do I know which precinct I live in?
Click here to visit the Colorado Secretary of State's website. Under "Manage my Registration" click on "Find my registration". Fill in your name, zip code and birthdate and click search. On the next page, your precinct number is listed under "District Information" next to 11.
I want to vote at caucus, but I'm not a Democrat! What do I do?
Click here to visit the Colorado Secretary of State's website. If you look up your information by clicking on "Find my registration" there is a link to change party affiliation. If you are not registered to vote and you have a Colorado Driver's License or ID, you can register online. If you do not have a Colorado Driver's License or ID, you can download a form to register to vote and affiliate as a Democrat.
When and where is my County Convention and Assembly?
County Conventions and Assemblies will be held in your county between March 2, 2016 and March 26, 2016. Check with your local county Democratic party for more information.
Another website with a good explanation is http://www.coloradoindependent.com/156870/is-2016-your-first-presidential-caucus-in-colorado-heres-how-it-works.
My caucus location did change from the local high school to a middle school. Not sure why. I’m going to have to see where my new location is. Check through the Secretary of State’s website to validate which precinct you’re in and then go to the Democratic site to look for where you actually need to show up.
The Republicans, on the other hand, have apparently decided to forgo the commitment process for their caucus. That might cause Colorado to basically be ignored on Super Tuesday, with few delegates for the Democratic side compared to other states and the Republicans not even having a Presidential commitment.
I have always enjoyed the movie “Who Shot Liberty Valance” with Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne and Lee Marvin. Towards the end of the movie, there’s a political convention to determine who should be their representative for the new territory and it’s a real raucous affair, with a horse rider wielding a lasso, lots of shouting, big booming speeches and it looked like fun. Well, the precinct caucuses haven’t been like that for me, but the Jefferson County caucus (the highest level I’ve gone to) did have that feel, with lots of folks, loud speeches, politicians breezing in and out as they gave our county a bit of time, trying to gather votes for several different levels of offices… I kept thinking of the movie as I had a good time.
I have to be honest, however. I am now of the opinion the caucuses are ignored when all is said and done. It’s presidential preference, of course, but other states that day are much larger and they have more pull for candidate attention and dollars. In 2010, I was disappointed that all the hard work for Andrew Romanoff didn’t mean a thing when Michael Bennet won the primary and became the Democratic candidate for the US Senate seat (he was the appointed incumbent) despite having lost at every level of the caucuses. Even the party platform with what seem like a couple hundred party positions seems to be ignored once the establishment gets ahold of the various issues. At least, I have been excited to see some issues and then I haven’t seen them show up in party initiatives in the Colorado legislature or in the national convention. Will that prevent me from attending? Heck no. I am looking forward to it and I highly encourage progressives to swamp the caucus and make the state party be better for us (and hopefully provide reasons for voters to turn out this fall).
Oh, and one more thing — I posted on the North Carolina Open Thread a message about a million Broncos fans turning out for yesterday’s parade and rally in Denver. Not a single report of problems. A sea of orange here in Bronco’s Country! Congratulations, Denver Broncos! I’m sure it’s because of Mrs. Colotim’s and my lucky jerseys, my purchasing celebration champagne Friday evening and the friend at work who chose not to bring champagne to the party he went to — all the superstitions added up to the great victory Sunday.