DES MOINES, Iowa — Diana Webb said she had 14 people pledged to show up at Lincoln High School to support Gov. Bill Richardson.
A precinct captain for the governor, Webb knew by heart the talking points of Richardson's campaign. "He's got more experience than anyone else," she told a reporter. "And the way the administration has messed things up, we're going to need a diplomat to fix it."
However, there were several Richardson no-shows at Des Moines Precinct 83, and in the end, there weren't enough for Richardson to win any delegates. Despite Webb's efforts, Richardson didn't reach the 15 percent viability threshold.
Lincoln High School hosted three precinct caucuses. The school is in an old established neighborhood south of the downtown area. Some of the participants there said the area has a large Italian American community.
Iowa Caucus Results
Senator Barack Obama : 37.58%
Senator John Edwards : 29.75%
Senator Hillary Clinton : 29.47%
Governor Bill Richardson : 2.11%
Senator Joe Biden : 0.93%
Uncommitted : 0.14%
Senator Chris Dodd : 0.02%
Precincts Reporting: 1781 of 1781
Source: Iowa Secretary of State
The 125 voters from Precinct 83 who showed up for the Democratic caucus packed into the show-choir room, gathering with like-thinkers under signs for their candidates.
It was obvious from the start that supporters of Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama far outnumbered the others.
Many wore T-shirts and buttons promoting their candidate.
The Richardson group sat in a circle of chairs near the front of the room. Next to them were signs for Sen. Joseph Biden and Rep. Dennis Kucinich. However, at first it seemed no one showed up for those candidates.
A man who was backing Sen. Chris Dodd walked in. However, there was no sign on the wall for Dodd. Webb nabbed him and convinced him to support Richardson.
A lone Kucinich supporter came in. He wasn't a strong supporter, however. In fact, he said he had a Dodd sign in his front yard. He said his third choice was Biden, but nobody else was there for the senator from Delaware.
Webb moved in. After a quick talk, she convinced him to go for Richardson.
But when the first count was made, Richardson fell short.
There were 49 Obama supporters, 37 for Clinton and 25 for Edwards. But the threshold was 19 delegates. Richardson had only 14, five short.
The Richardson supporters were now fair game for the others. Several drifted to the Obama camp. One of these, Vicki Hoogeveen, joined her husband, Nate, who decided to support Obama after seeing him speak the previous weekend.
The Iowa Independent, an online publication, reported late Wednesday about a possible deal between Richardson and Obama. On Thursday afternoon,
The New York Times, quoted "a senior Obama campaign adviser" as saying Richardson and Obama had reached a deal in which Richardson supporters would go to Obama in precincts in which Richardson didn't reach 15 percent threshold for viability. In exchange, according to the reports, Obama supporters would go to Richardson at caucuses in which Obama had more backers than needed to win any additional delegates.
The Obama campaign denied any such deal. Richardson spokesman Pahl Shipley also denied the reports. "We have not made any deals with any other campaigns," he told
The New Mexican, "We expect to be viable in most, if not all, precincts, and we are looking for a strong showing. You cannot tell Iowans who to support — they are very independent."
Webb had said before the caucus she would support Obama if Richardson wasn't viable. "He'd be a lot easier for Richardson to beat in the West," she said.
However, after speaking in length to a woman from the Edwards camp, Webb realigned with Edwards.
The final count in Precinct 83 was 54 for Obama, 39 for Clinton and 28 for Edwards.
Contact Steve Terrell at 986-3037 or sterrell@sfnewmexican.com.
