Pressure mounts on Nevada to change caucus date
Minnesota Representative Michele Bachmann, former Utah
Governor Jon Huntsman, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and
former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum announced they might
skip the Nevada event to support New Hampshire’s traditional
status as an early primary state.Nevada and New Hampshire are among four states authorized
by the Republican National Committee to hold the first contests
on the road to choosing a nominee to face Democratic President
Barack Obama in the November 2012 election.Aiming to protect the state’s status, Nevada Republicans
pushed up their caucus by more than a month to Jan. 14 after
Florida bumped ahead its primary in a move that left the
nominating process in turmoil.But Nevada’s move irked New Hampshire, which traditionally
holds its primary before Nevada’s caucus. Under current plans,
Iowa is tentatively scheduled to hold its first-in-the-nation
caucus on Jan. 3, with the Nevada caucus slated for 11 days
later.New Hampshire’s secretary of state has threatened to hold
the state’s primary election as early as Dec. 6 unless Nevada
pushes its caucus back.New Hampshire traditionally holds its primary on a Tuesday,
and state law requires it to hold its contest seven days before
any “similar” contest.A move by Nevada to push its caucus back three days to Jan.
17 could allow New Hampshire to hold a primary on Jan. 10 and
still have a one-week space before Nevada’s contest.If Nevada sticks with its Jan. 14 caucus, the latest New
Hampshire could hold its primary would be Jan. 7, a Saturday,
and just four days after Iowa — something state officials have
said would diminish the state’s status.A spokesman for the Nevada Republican Party did not respond
to messages about the state’s plans.Mitt Romney, a Republican front-runner, and Representative
Ron Paul have said they will compete in Nevada, as has Texas
Governor Rick Perry, who has the backing of Nevada Governor
Brian Sandoval, giving him a boost in a state that backed Obama
in 2008.A spokesman for businessman Herman Cain, who has surged
among Republican candidates in recent polls, did not respond to
messages.
