The original news out of Nevada was Who Really Won? Clinton won the popular vote, Obama won the delegate vote, FIGHT. However, shortly after the caucuses word spread of serious irregularities.
One of the first reports to go out was this DailyKos diary from thereisnospoon, detailing lost registration lists, doors closing early, Clinton supporters turning away Obama supporters, etc. etc. etc.. Just after 6PM, Obama’s camp released this statement:
We currently have reports of over 200 separate incidents of trouble at caucus sites, including doors being closed up to thirty minutes early, registration forms running out so people were turned away, and ID being requested and checked in a non-uniform fashion. This is in addition to the Clinton campaign’s efforts to confuse voters and call into question the at-large caucus sites which clearly had an affect on turnout at these locations. These kinds of Clinton campaign tactics were part of an entire week’s worth of false, divisive, attacks designed to mislead caucus-goers and discredit the caucus itself.
It was accompanied by a phone number for people to call to report irregularities. The Clinton camp swiftly released their own statement alleging suppression by Obama supporters.
On Wednesday, January 23, The Obama campaign officially lodged a complaint with the Nevada Democratic Party. They included an image of a page from the Clinton campaign book that said “It’s not illegal unless they tell you so” and extolling readers to do everything they could.
As of this post, the only thing that is clear is that the Nevada Democratic Party sucks at running caucuses. We’ll keep you appraised of any further details as they emerge.
