The Iowa Democratic Party announced the release of 100 percent of the state caucus results Thursday night, showing Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders neck and neck in their lead over the rest of the Democratic candidates. The results could change as more data is examined, and NBC has not called a winner in the race.
The Iowa Democrats' announcement comes after Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez called on state party officials to recanvass the results of Monday's caucuses amid growing concerns about their accuracy (see NBC News' review of the results).
Caucusgoers gathered at nearly 1,700 sites across Iowa on Monday night to tally support for their preferred candidates only for the count to be thrown into disarray when what Iowa Democrats called "inconsistencies" delayed the reporting of results.
The state has 41 pledged delegates up for grabs, and the high-stakes contest traditionally plays a major role in determining who is a legitimate contender in the race. Candidates in the crowded Democratic field needed to meet a threshold of support (at least 15 percent of attendees at most caucus sites) to become viable, or they saw supporters move on to someone else.
Highlights from the Iowa caucuses
- An NBC News review of the Iowa caucus vote finds the results are rife with potential errors, inconsistencies.
- DNC Chair Perez calls for recanvassing results amid growing concerns about their accuracy.
- Buttigieg, Sanders are neck and neck with nearly all the votes reported.
- Iowa caucus app was rushed and flawed from the beginning, experts say.
- Here's why more than one candidate can declare victory.
- Caucus chaos sparks fresh calls for an end to Iowa's leadoff status.
- Where to find Iowa race results.
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Biden makes staffing changes after 'punch in the gut' poor showing in Iowa
Joe Biden has tapped a senior aide to take on an "expanded role" in the day-to-day operations of his campaign, the first tangible shift in strategy for the one-time national frontrunner since a disappointing fourth-place finish in the Iowa caucuses.
The announcement came in an email to staff on Thursday night from campaign manager Greg Schultz and chairman Steve Ricchetti, in which they also acknowledged some staff-level departures after the Iowa "punch in the gut" coupled with new hires and an eye toward Super Tuesday on March 3.
Dunn had already been playing a key role at the highest levels of the Biden operation, primarily focused on communications strategy and debate prep. The internal email, which was first reported by The New York Times, said she now "will be working closely with us on campaign strategy and overall coordination on budget and personnel as we build a bigger campaign for the next phase."
FIRST READ: What stands out after Iowa is Bernie Sanders' limited crossover appeal
Yes, Bernie Sanders could very well end up being the odds-on favorite to win the Democratic nomination — if he wins New Hampshire and Nevada.
And especially if Pete Buttigieg/Joe Biden/Michael Bloomberg split up the vote in the party’s moderate lane beginning on Super Tuesday.
But now that the dust — or more accurately, all the mess — has settled after Iowa, it becomes clear that Sanders only had an “ok” night in the Hawkeye State.
He might have met expectations, but he certainly didn’t exceed them. Turnout was lower than expected. And the entrance poll showed him with limited crossover appeal outside of his young, very liberal base.
NBC News review of Iowa caucus vote finds potential errors, inconsistencies
The Iowa Democratic caucus results are rife with potential errors and inconsistencies that could affect the outcome of the election, according to a review by the NBC News Decision Desk.
The apparent mistakes — spotted in at least dozens of the state's 1,711 precincts — call into question the accuracy of the outcome of Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucus, which was held on Monday night.
In some individual precincts, it may be possible to fix the errors; in other precincts, it will probably be impossible to determine how voters truly made their choices.
The potential errors and inconsistencies take on importance because of the closeness of the contest between the two front-runners — former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
Yang fires dozens of Iowa staff
Entrepreneur Andrew Yang's campaign is letting go of "dozens" of staff in Iowa, including its national political and policy directors, the campaign confirmed to NBC News.
“As part of our original plans following the Iowa caucuses, we are winding down our Iowa operations and restructuring to compete as the New Hampshire primary approaches," campaign manager Zach Graumann said in a statement.
Graumann called the firings "a natural evolution of the campaign post-Iowa, same as other campaigns have undertaken."
Yang "is going to keep fighting for the voices of the more than 400,000 supporters who have donated to the campaign and placed a stake in the future of our country,” Graumann said.
Politico first reported the dismissals.
With the majority of the results reported by the Iowa Democratic Party, Yang appears to have finished sixth in Iowa, with about 1 percent of state delegate equivalents.
Sanders, Buttigieg declare themselves Iowa winners
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday declared a "very strong victory" in Iowa's caucuses, days after the state's botched process delayed the release of results.
"What I wanna do today, three days late, is to thank the people of Iowa for the very strong victory they gave us for the caucuses Monday night," Sanders said.
Sanders acknowledged he was disappointed to be making the declaration to reporters at a campaign office in a strip mall in New Hampshire, instead of to voters in Iowa, but suggested that it was the right move compared to rival Pete Buttigieg, who made his own declaration of victory in Iowa on Monday night, before any results had been released.
Buttigieg was triumphant when he addressed supporters Monday before any official results were released and continued to claim victory through the week.
At a New York fundraiser on Wednesday, Buttigieg continued to tout an Iowa win.
"There is just no question that Monday in Iowa represents an astonishing victory for our vision, for our candidacy and for this country," he said, hailing the contest as a demonstration of his ability to win across rural, suburban and urban areas, as well as places that had previously voted for Donald Trump.