GOP candidates unworried about Iowa turnout as they face record cold caucus temperatures
GOP candidates aren’t worried about potential record-low Iowa caucus temperatures, saying that they think their supporters are uniquely motivated to come out.
DES MOINES, Iowa — Temperatures for the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses Monday are set to be the coldest in the contest’s modern history, with a forecast high temperature of around 0 degrees in Des Moines, according to the National Weather Service.
But Republican presidential candidates aren’t worried, uniformly saying they think their supporters are uniquely motivated to come out and vote the night of Jan. 15. And state party leaders also don’t think the frigid temperatures will affect turnout.
Iowa Republican Party Chair Jeff Kaufmann said this week that barring severe weather, he doesn’t think the cold temperatures alone will drive caucusgoers away in large numbers.
“I think as long as there’s not a severe ice storm, I don’t think cold keeps people away,” Kaufmann said, adding later, “It’s one of those things, kind of like a football game, that’s going to go on no matter what.”
While Kaufmann still thinks turnout will be robust, he conceded that it may not break records this year. Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that caucus day temperatures haven’t dipped that low in the last half-century.
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