The Iowa straw poll, a political jamboree that has been fixture in the Republican presidential nominating process for nearly four decades but has come under criticism in recent years, was officially cancelled Friday by state GOP leaders in a unanimous vote.
In a conference call Friday morning, members of the Iowa Republican Party's state central committee decided not to move forward with the event this summer, calling their decision an important step toward strengthening the Hawkeye State's first-in-the-nation standing in the nomination process.
“I've said since December that we would only hold a straw poll if the candidates wanted one, and this year that is just not the case," said Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufmann."...This step, while extremely distasteful for those of us who love the Straw Poll, is necessary to strengthen our First in the Nation status and ensure our future nominee has the best chance possible to take back the White House in 2016."
The straw poll is an Iowa political tradition that dates back to 1979 and serves two basic purposes: raising money for the Iowa GOP and showcasing the presidential candidates and their relative strengths months ahead of the state's first-in-the-nation caucuses.
But the summertime event has faced an existential crisis since the last time it was held, as Republican strategists and officials have questioned its utility in predicting how hopefuls will fare in Iowa and whether it's a worthwhile investment of candidate time and money. In 2011, then-congresswoman Michele Bachmann won the straw poll; she went on to finish last in the 2012 caucuses.
It had also become expensive to compete in the poll. Candidates have had to pay for plum spots at the event, which has been likened to a county fair or a carnival. Hopefuls had to shell out big bucks to transport supporters and pay for food.
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (R) has been one the poll's most prominent critics, once saying the gathering had "outlived its usefulness." The emerging crop of White House hopefuls also showed little interest in the event.
While representatives for seven candidates and probable contenders dropped by a straw poll planning session last month, no one from the top-tier campaigns was there.
Jeb Bush and Mike Huckabee -- who won the 2008 Iowa caucuses -- were opting out. Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) had signaled that he would not participate. And Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, seen as an early front-runner in Iowa, had been non-committal.
Even as the effort to undermine the straw poll picked up steam, many Republicans rallied to try to save the event. In May, 156 state Republican activists took to the pages of the Des Moines Register with an op-ed urging candidates to participate.
And in January, the state GOP central committee voted 16 to 0 to begin planning a straw poll. This year's version had been slated to take place in Boone instead of Ames, where it has been held in past years.
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