Whooeee – it is primary season. For some political junkies it gets no better than this. Just like March Madness, only the winner may be able to blow up the world next year at this time.
So how did we get to this state of affairs? And why does Iowa spell primary C-A-U-C-U-S?
For some of you this may be a review from 6th grade civics. For those who have been in school since Reagan, well Good Luck.

1) What year were the Primaries first held as a method of choosing delegates?
a) 1908
b) 1916
c) 1932
d) 1912

2) Which Party held the first primaries and who won them?
a) Republican – Taft won
b) Democrats – Bryan won
c) Republicans – Roosevelt won
d) Democrats – Wilson won.

3) One of the major problems with primaries in the first 50 years or so was
a) most were non-binding and delegates could vote as they wished at convention.
b) all primaries were open to all voters
c) They were often held in cold weather months
d) Counting was done by party pros, thus making results questionable.

4) New Hampshire has a reputation for upsets. What sitting president was upset by a challenger from his own party?
a) Lyndon Johnson was surprised by Gene McCarthy
b) Ronald Reagan surprised incumbent Gerry Ford.
c) Next-door neighbor Ted Kennedy beat Jimmy Carter
d) Estes Kefauver beat a surprised Harry Truman.

5) While primaries have been around for quite awhile, when did they take on major significance?
a) with the emergence of Dwight Eisenhower as the leading Republican candidate in 1952.
b) After the 1968 Chicago Democratic convention.
c) With the emergence of Franklin Roosevelt in 1932
d) In 1980, with Ronald Reagan’s surprise march to the nomination.

6) In 1968, RFK was killed after the California primary. Did he win or lose that contest?
a) won
b) lost

7) Here is a number that you all saw a couple weeks ago prior to the Iowa Caucuses. How many precincts does Iowa have?
a) 1,774
b) 1,528
c) 2,110
d) 99

8) Iowa’s caucuses moved to the first in the nation in what year?
a) 1980
b) 1992
c) 1976
d) 1972

9) When is Super Tuesday this year and how many states will participate via primary or caucus?
a) Feb. 28 – 11 states
b) March 13th – 15 states
c) March 6th – 10 states
d) Feb. 21 – 13 states

10) In 1960, the Wisconsin Democratic primary was a real test of whether Jack Kennedy’s religion would be an issue. His opponent in that primary was Hubert Humphrey, a well known Senator from neighboring Minnesota. How did Kennedy do?
a) Lost by a landslide.
b) won by a solid margin
c) lost narrowly
d) won but very narrowly

Not too easy I hope.
In case you are wondering, No, I have never run in a primary.
But you want answers, so here goes:

1) d – 1912
2) c – it was the Republicans and Roosevelt was won nearly everything except a couple for Bob LaFollette
3) a – the reason Roosevelt was not nominated in 1912 was that none of the primaries were binding.
4) d – Estes Kefauver defeated Harry Truman which persuaded Truman that it was time to go back to Independence.
5) a – After the 1968 Chicago convention in an attempt to open up the party.
6) a – RFK had just given a victory speech when he was shot.
7) a – 1,774 precincts in Iowa
8) d – 1972
9) c – March 6th – 10 states
10) b – won 56.5% to 43.5% – pretty much ending Humphrey’s hopes. JFK won all the primaries he entered (8) plus a couple others by write-in.