The Delegate Fight: 2012

[Joe Biden 2020]

Forgive me if this has been covered before, but the green papers website is confusing.  Do the Iowa Caucuses actually award delegates just like a normal primary?  I heard a CNN commentator saying the Caucuses are meaningless except for momentum, much like the Ames Straw Poll?

[Joe Biden 2020]

They are semi-meaningless and semi-meaningful Bush.  The tally coming out of Iowa is essentially a straw poll, but it will mirror the composition of the caucus goers who will be selecting delegates to the county conventions in March.  Those delegates won't be bound to support in March those who they support now (which is why Iowa will not be penalized for going early) but likely will unless their candidate has dropped out by then.

Almost like the General Election on November 6 chooses the Electors who will officially cast their vote for President a few weeks later, should be the same, but they are free to change their mind as in 2004 when one Minnesota Elector defected and voted for John Edwards.  Is that basically the same idea?

[Joe Biden 2020]

According to CNNPolitics.com, the delegate breakdown from Iowa are as follows - Romney, Santorum, and Paul each get 7 delegates while Gingrich and Perry get 2 apiece for a total of 25 pledged delegates plus there are 3 more unpledged.

Romney currently has 18 delegates (7 from Iowa, 11 unpledged).
Santorum currently has 11 delegates (7 from Iowa, 4 unpledged).

EDIT:  According to CNN Politics, Santorum only has 8 delegates (7 from Iowa, 1 unpledged)

Ron Paul currently has 7 delegates (all from Iowa)
Rick Perry has 4 delegates (2 from Iowa, 2 unpledged)
Newt Gingrich has 2 delegates (both from Iowa)
Michelle Bachmann did not have any delegates at time of drop out
Jon Huntsman has 0 delegates so far.

[Joe Biden 2020]

According to CNNPolitics.com, the delegate breakdown from Iowa are as follows - Romney, Santorum, and Paul each get 7 delegates while Gingrich and Perry get 2 apiece for a total of 25 pledged delegates plus there are 3 more unpledged.

Romney currently has 18 delegates (7 from Iowa, 11 unpledged).
Santorum currently has 11 delegates (7 from Iowa, 4 unpledged).

No delegates were selected last night. CNN and other media outlets are projecting the delegate distribution based off last nights results but the fact is no delegates will be selected until June and even then they will be unpledged. All that happened last night was a non binding straw poll of caucus goers and that delegates selected the people who will select the people who will pick the delegates.

That may be true, but last night was more than a meaningless-save-for-momentum straw poll.  CNN knows that the Iowa Caucuses didn't actually award delegates, but they are projecting what the most likely delegate count will be when the convention meets this summer.  The convention voters could very well change their minds, but why would they give the finger to their own state party's voters and silence their voices?  I'm still counting based on the total delegates including Iowa, which is why I distinguished in parentheses how many delegates were from Iowa, and which were already committed before the Caucuses.

[Joe Biden 2020]

AP are now saying that it's Romney 13, Santorum 12.

CNN has that too but I have no idea where they are getting from.

Greenpapers have it very differently set up.

Actually, CNN has Romney at 18, Santorum at 8, Paul at 7, Perry 4, and Gingrich 2 including the tentative Iowa delegates.

http://www.cnn.com/election/2012/primaries.html

[Joe Biden 2020]

We won't get that many delegates added to the total from New Hampshire as it only has 12 delegates.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Current NH delegates are Romney 5, Paul 3, Hunstman 2 with 2 still on the table.

[Joe Biden 2020]

Pretty sure FL has already been sanctioned for the early primary.

The Green Papers show they have 50 delegates remaining out of the original 99 for a penalty of 50%.

[Joe Biden 2020]

According to CNN through last night's Florida contest, the delegate count stands at Mitt Romney 84, Newt Gingrich 27, Ron Paul 10, Rick Santorum 8.  If these numbers are correct, Mitt Romney is roughly 7.5% of the way to the required 1,144 delegates.  Can you confirm these numbers, Erc, or do you show something different?