Harry Reid calls for end to all caucuses

Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called on the Democratic Party to abandon the caucus system on Sunday in a statement released following the caucuses held in his home state.

Reid said in a statement that the Nevada Democratic Party “did a good job” with Saturday’s caucuses following the chaos in Iowa after its first-in-the-nation contest, while calling on the caucus system to be dropped entirely.

“I am so proud of the Nevada Democratic Party, its talented staff, and the thousands of grassroots volunteers who have done so much hard work over the years to build this operation. We have the best state party in the country, and that was shown again this past week after another successful caucus that featured a historic four days of early voting with more than 10,000 new voter registrations,” Reid said of the Nevada Democratic Party.

“With so much Democratic enthusiasm in Nevada, demonstrated again by the tremendous caucus turnout this year, I believe we should make the process of selecting our nominee even more accessible,” Reid continued, adding: “That’s why I believe it’s time for the Democratic Party to move to primaries everywhere.”

His remarks come after Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt) strong showing in Nevada’s caucuses on Saturday, winning more than 40 percent of the vote statewide and leading his closest opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, by more than 20 points.

The Democratic Party and Iowa’s state party in particular came under heavy criticism after the Iowa caucuses ended in confusion, with two campaigns calling for recanvassing efforts in dozens of precincts and no clear winner being declared in the immediate days afterward.

Iowa’s state Democratic Party chairman later resigned over the confusion, apologizing and taking responsibility for the decision to use an untested app that failed in many precincts on caucus day.