Nevada Republican Caucus: Reports Of Chaos, Disorganization Spark Concerns Over Vote Counting, Early-State Status

UPDATE 10:45 p.m. EST -- Responding to tweeted photos of caucus workers in campaign gear (largely Trump gear), the Nevada GOP tweeted reassurance.

UPDATE: 10:28 p.m. EST — While many people were reporting irregularities and disorganization with the Nevada Republican caucus process Tuesday night, the state Republican Party said it has received "no official reports of voting irregularities or violations."

Original Story:

The Nevada Republican caucuses are known for being chaotic, and this year appears to be no exception. As Nevadans showed up to caucus Tuesday night, reports flooded in of extremely high voter turnout and disorganized caucus sites, causing many observers to worry about how long it would take to get accurate results.

Typically, very few Republicans participate in the Silver State caucuses. In 2008, about 12 percent of registered Republican voters caucused, and in 2012, the turnout was even worse, dropping to about 8 percent. Despite the extremely low turnout, the state’s Republican Party has struggled to count votes in a timely manner.

In 2012, it took the party three days to count the votes from the 33,000 Republicans who showed up to caucus, and the party kept no list of who participated. This year, the state Republican Party said more people preregistered for the caucuses than participated at all in 2012, meaning long lines at caucus sites and expectations for many more caucusgoers.

This large turnout has led many to speculate that it could be early Wednesday morning or later before results are known. Caucuses in general are often more confusing than traditional primaries because they involve multiple precincts gathering at one site and allow candidates or their surrogates to give speeches on the night of the event, which can lead some caucusgoers to change their preference at the last minute.

Reporters and caucusgoers took to Twitter Tuesday night to comment (and complain) about everything from long lines to lax ID policies and more serious rule violations. Some said caucus sites were running out of ballots, and Emily Cahn, a Mashable reporter, even tweeted that someone voted twice for Republican front-runner Donald Trump.

In response to reports of double voting and disorganization, a state GOP official issued a statement, according to Nevada political expert Jon Ralston. "Obviously we take reports of double voting very seriously and we will be reviewing ballots. There is a master sign in sheet and that we will be checking closely as well," the official said. The official downplayed the scene being reported on Twitter, saying "not the entire place was in chaos" in reference to the site where double voting was said to have taken place.

Beyond long lines and potentially longer vote counting times, the chaotic atmosphere at caucus sites could also put in danger Nevada’s status as the “first in the west” nominating contest. It only received this special status in 2008, and many in the state are concerned they could lose their early-state status after this election cycle. Depending on the turnout at the end of the night and how messy the caucuses get, there is a chance that this year’s caucuses could change Nevada’s placement going forward.