here's a primary blog b/c y'all are all so excited about it

1.What's the difference between Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the primary calendar?
Phase one is the four early states in February, which have a paltry number of delegates but an extraordinary impact on the race’s overall narrative. Phase two is the briefest but the most consequential: It spans March 1 to 17.

2. Which four states get to vote first, separated roughly into one each week?
  • Monday, February 3: Iowa caucuses
  • Tuesday, February 11: New Hampshire primary
  • Saturday, February 22: Nevada caucuses
  • Saturday, February 29: South Carolina primary
3. There are few delegates available in these four states, why are the primaries so important?
They normally don't get much of a say, but in primaries, their job is solidifying (or damaging) a frontrunner’s position, giving an underdog a surge of attention, or driving poorly performing contenders out of the race.

4. How many delegates are available in Phase 2?
More than half of all 3,979 pledged delegates will be locked down.

5. Which regions are holding most of their primaries on Super Tuesday?
 Super Tuesday primaries will be for Texas and California.

6. How many primaries are held the following week on March 10? And how many on March 17? On March 10, contests in Michigan, Washington, Missouri, Mississippi, Idaho, and North Dakota will take place. Voting in the Democrats Abroad primary (a vote among party members living overseas), which begins on Super Tuesday, will also conclude. On March 17Florida, Ohio, Illinois, and Arizona have primaries

7. What is different about the California primary this year?
California moved from an early June primary late in the process, up to Super Tuesday.

8. Why is Phase 3 less important than 1 and 2?
Phase three only occurs if the nomination is still contested, which most time it isn't.

9. What is one argument in favor of letting Iowa and New Hampshire (small states) go first?
Defenders of the setup argue that it lets lesser-known candidates make their case in a smaller, more manageable setting (rather than getting swamped by the best-known, best-funded candidate nationally). The early states also perform the function of winnowing the field — narrowing down what can be a large and confusing set of options to a few contenders before most of the country votes.

10. How does the Democratic Party way of distributing delegates make this system even slower?
Democrats allot all delegates proportionally, with no winner-take-all contests permitted. The lack of winner-take-all prizes can make it more difficult for a Democratic candidate who’s leading to technically reach the “magic number” of delegates until very late in the contest.

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