Several groups have joined together to hold a “mock caucus” tonight on the Drake University campus.
“We got together and said ‘this would be a good thing to get people more excited to caucus if they know how,'” Jack Hellie, the editor-in-chief of the Drake Political Review. “The purpose is turn people out next Monday.”
Hellie, a junior from Saint Cloud, Minnesota, helped organize the practice caucus with the Drake University Student Senate and the leaders of Drake College Republicans and Drake University Democrats. The purpose of the event is to train students on the caucus process. Many Drake students who are eligible to participate in the Iowa Caucuses are from out of state.
“We thought a lot of those people probably don’t know how…and if they did know how and understood the process and what they would be doing if they made it on February 1, they would be more inclined to do so,” Hellie said.
More college students could be participating in the Iowa Caucuses this year because they’re being held on February 1. In the past, the Caucuses were held in early January when many college students were away from their campuses due to the winter break. The “mock caucus” at Drake University will take place tonight in the Knapp Center.