Iowa and Nevada Democrats can caucus by phone in 2020


 

 

Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing

July 8, 2019: Iowa and Nevada Democrats will be able to vote by phone in the 2020 caucuses. Kamala Harris raised $12 million in the second quarter of 2019.

While financial reports for the second quarter of 2019—covering April through June—are not due to the Federal Election Commission until July 15, some presidential candidates announced their fundraising amounts last week. Here’s a chart of the figures we know so far.

There are eight new candidates running since last week, including one Democrat and four Republicans. In total, 766 individuals are currently filed with the FEC to run for president.

Notable Quote of the Day

“I’ve long believed [the Democratic field] will winnow down substantially come Thanksgiving. I haven’t seen anybody to cause me to reconsider that. And if anybody is hanging on through Iowa outside the top six, we’re talking about a cabinet tryout or vanity.”

– Mike McCauley, Democratic strategist

Democrats

  • The Democratic state parties in Iowa and Nevada announced voters will be able to participate in their state’s caucus over the telephone.
  • Dana Bash, Don Lemon, and Jake Tapper will moderate the July 30-31, 2019, Democratic primary debates. CNN will also broadcast a live drawing for the debate stage lineups on July 18.
  • Michael BennetBill de BlasioCory BookerPete ButtigiegKamala HarrisBeto O’Rourke, and Elizabeth Warren spoke at the Essence Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana, over the weekend.
  • In an interview on CNN Friday, Joe Biden discussed the first Democratic presidential debate, his comments on desegregation and busing, and Donald Trump. He also said he supported spending $100 billion to improve school infrastructure during a speech at the National Education Association forum in Houston.
  • Booker spoke with Reno Gazette-Journal about his Nevada ties, affordable housing, charter schools, and a transition to Medicare for All during his swing through Nevada.
  • Steve Bullock, who entered the presidential race halfway through the second quarter, raised $2 million. 
  • Buttigieg announced a minority-focused small business plan that would allow individuals who qualify for Pell Grants to defer their student loan payments and potentially forgive their loans if they start a business. His plan would also establish a $10 billion fund for minority-owned businesses.
  • Julián Castro campaigned in Nevada and Iowa over the weekend.
  • In an interview on CBS’ Face the NationJohn Delaney said he opposed decriminalizing border crossings
  • Tulsi Gabbard campaigned across New Hampshire over the weekend, including parades in Bradford and Franconia.
  • Kirsten Gillibrand campaigned through all 10 New Hampshire counties.
  • The Mike Gravel campaign tweeted that it was “nearing its conclusion,” although Gravel was still attempting to qualify for the second presidential debate.
  • Harris raised nearly $12 million in the second quarter of 2019, which matched her first quarter fundraising. Her campaign said she raised $2 million the day after the first presidential debate in June.
  • John Hickenlooper held two campaign events in Aspen, Colorado, before heading to Iowa over the weekend. He discussed the health of his campaign following several staff departures, saying that “the vast majority of the problem with the campaign was me not being as good of a messenger as I need to be.”
  • Jay Inslee issued his education policy platform Friday. Connecting education to addressing climate change, Inslee called for investing more in STEM, upgrading school infrastructure, and establishing universal pre-school and free or reduced college tuition.
  • Amy Klobuchar unveiled her Progress Partnership education policy on Friday, which would provide federal funds to states that increase teacher pay, update their high school curriculum, and establish a process to repair schools statewide.  
  • Seth Moulton discussed his presidential campaign, patriotism, and military service in an interview on ABC This Week
  • Beto O’Rourke campaigned in Nashville Sunday, marking his first trip to Tennessee as a presidential candidate.
  • Politico published an article examining the difference between Bernie Sanders’ 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns.
  • Joe Sestak tweeted about his border policy Saturday, writing that the National Mass Care Strategy should be implemented for relief services and reunification, the Northern Triangle countries should receive aid money, and the Office of Refugee Resettlement should be expanded.
  • After canceling his New Hampshire campaign swing over the weekend, Eric Swalwell will hold a news conference Monday afternoon.
  • Warren wrote an op-ed in Essence and a Medium post introducing her plan to achieve pay equity for women of color. Her proposal focuses on companies that contract with the federal government.
  • Daily Beast profiled Marianne Williamson’s 2014 congressional campaign for California’s 33rd Congressional District.
  • Andrew Yang will appear on The View on ABC News Monday morning.

Republicans

  • The Donald Trump campaign is expected to focus on Biden’s record in the Senate, rather than tenure as vice president, if he wins the Democratic presidential nomination.
  • Bill Weld raised $688,000 in the second quarter of 2019 from 7,000 donors.

On the Cusp: Tracking Potential Candidates

  • Justin Amash announced that he was leaving the Republican Party in a Washington Post op-ed on July 4. Over the weekend, he said he would not rule out running for president.
  • Tom Steyer told Need to Impeach and NextGen America staff members last week that he planned to announce a presidential run Tuesday, according to a report from The Atlantic.

General Election Updates

  • According to Advertising Analytics, political ad spending in the 2020 presidential election will likely exceed $2.7 billion. 

What We’re Reading

Flashback: July 8, 2015

Martin O’Malley called for freezing state tuition rates and connecting tuition to the state median income in his plan to make education at public universities debt-free.