Why Does Nevada Matter?

by Be_Devine [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Those who know me know I'm a grumpy old man trapped inside a young but aging body. And so here goes my Andy Rooneyesque comment.

In the 2004 Nevada presidential caucuses (held on February 14th), a total of 9,000 people caucused in the entire state. No, that was not a typo. No, I did not forget some zeroes. 9,000 people.  Yes, a total of 0.3 percent of Nevada's population bothered to show up to decide who their party's presidential candidate should be.

Some argue that by moving up the Nevada caucuses, the turnout will increase.  For example, the Nevada Democratic Party says it expects "three or four times" that number. (Hazaaa!!! 36,000 people!)   Even if that optimistic projection comes true, that's still only 1.5 percent of the state's population.  That tells me that the only people who are going to show up to caucuses tomorrow are the die-hard supporters of a particular candidate , not a representative sampling of the state.

So, please tell me, why do we care what 9,000, or even 36,000 people in a politically apathetic state have to say?