Iowans head to the state’s caucuses Monday night to cast the nation’s first votes for party nominations, as self-described “nervous” GOP front-runner Donald Trump and Democratic leader Hillary Clinton cling to narrow leads in their party races.
Hawkeye State citizens are set to gather at 1,681 precincts at 7 p.m. local time (8 p.m. in New York) to caucus for their favorite candidate.
In this dusty, old-fashioned system, registered voters don’t simply cast a vote at any time during the day like in a normal election.
Instead, they meet at hometown locales such as school gyms, libraries and civic centers, listen to speeches and then state their preferences.
Republican caucuses tend to be much faster and more efficient, with reps from all candidates making statements before secret ballots are cast.
Democrats endure a more arduous affair, with supporters of each candidate standing off in separate corners of a room when an initial head count is taken.
If a candidate has less than 15 percent support in the room, that presidential hopeful is knocked out and his or her backers are free to walk to another corner before a final tally is taken.
Iowa’s delegates to their party’s national conventions late this summer will be awarded based on these Monday night results.
GOP front-runner Trump, on top in polls since the summer, has been trying to tamp down expectations. The Iowa caucuses mark the first time he has ever faced voters.
“Well, you have to be a little bit nervous,” the political newcomer told “Good Morning America” on Monday.
“You know I’d like to win and I want to win for the country. I don’t want to win for myself. This is actually my first election night (as a candidate) … this is a little bit different for me.”
Clinton on Monday hopes to avoid a come-from-ahead Iowa loss, similar to the setback she suffered in 2008 which sparked President Obama’s historic White House run.
The former secretary of state, dogged by ongoing questions over her use of a private email server for work duties, said she’ll be benefit in the fall from all this scrutiny.
“I’m tested, I’m a little bit scarred up but I’m still standing. I think that kind of experience will really do me well in this campaign,” Clinton told “This Morning.”
“I believe I’m the Democrat who can make sure we keep the White House in the right hands going forward.”
Clinton’s longtime ally, Mayor Bill de Blasio, was in Iowa on Monday to help with last-moment campaigning. His work in Iowa has him away from New York, and de Blasio will miss Tuesday’s Groundhog Day ceremony at the Staten Island Zoo.
Additional reporting by Marisa Schultz in Washington, DC