Former Vice President Joe Biden appears to be the frontrunner for the Democrat Party Presidential nomination.
But looks can be deceiving.
And that’s because Joe Biden had a sick feeling in his stomach when he suffered this campaign-killing setback.
Joe Biden currently leads in the national primary polls.
But nominations are not decided by any sort of national primary vote.
Individual states hold primaries and caucuses that winnow the field and award the delegates that decide the Presidential nomination.
And the first state up is Iowa.
Joe Biden is not the frontrunner in Iowa.
Currently in the Real Clear Politics aggregate of polls in the Hawkeye State, Joe Biden sits in third place.
Even that position is precarious.
Biden is presenting himself as the “electable” center-left candidate hoping to own moderates and liberals that value beating Donald Trump above all else.
The former Vice President is finding out he does not have that pool of voters all to himself.
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar is making a charge in Iowa and her candidacy could be the greatest threat to Biden.
That’s because Biden does not need to win Iowa to maintain his frontrunner status.
But he can’t afford a fourth or fifth place finish that would demonstrate that his only appeal is to voters in states he hasn’t campaigned in yet.
Klobuchar turned in what many considered a strong debate performance in the December faceoff where Klobuchar directly attacked current Iowa poll leader 37-year-old South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg over his lack of experience.
The day after the debate, Klobuchar raised one million dollars which is a clear sign there was renewed interest in her Presidential bid.
Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal endorsed Biden but even he admitted Iowans were giving Klobuchar a second look and that “the surge is real.”
“Amy is dynamite,” Gronstal told the press. “Who knows where it leads, but Iowans have spent the last six months getting to know these candidates, and now they’re in the position where they’re getting to make up their minds.”
“The surge is real,” Gronstal added.
Biden winning Iowa would likely end the nomination contest.
That doesn’t appear likely because of Klobuchar’s late surge.
Even if Biden limps out of Iowa with a fourth or fifth place finish, Biden could be looking at another fourth-place finish in New Hampshire where Buttigieg currently leads and Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders own a home field advantage.
Biden looks strong in Nevada and South Carolina, but it remains to be seen if Biden’s support can hold if the first two states show him to be a paper tiger.
And Biden faces a major risk of dropping to fourth or fifth in Iowa.
Klobuchar is gathering momentum with moderates and Democrats that care about winning as polls show nearly three quarters of Democrat voters in Iowa have yet to make up their minds as to who they are supporting.
Candidates that win or surge to surprisingly high finishes in Iowa usually peak in the final weeks before the caucus.
And Klobuchar appears to be peaking at the right time.
Great American Daily will keep you up to date on any new developments in the 2020 Presidential Election.
