Networks Call Iowa For Trump While Voters Are Still Caucusing

“It’s like a bunch of children scrambling to get hits,” one DeSantis supporter told HuffPost at the Florida Republican governor's election watch party in West Des Moines, Iowa.

Iowa Republicans braved the bitter cold to attend the state’s presidential caucuses Monday night, only for some news outlets to project a winner even though voting had barely gotten underway.

Former President Donald Trump was projected to be the caucus winner by The Associated Press at 8:36 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on social media, a little more than half an hour after the caucusing began.

The outcome was not a surprise. Trump had led in polling prior to the caucuses, with a final poll by the Des Moines Register, NBC News and Mediacom Iowa showing him getting a bit less than half of the caucus-goers’ support but well ahead of former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

The AP was not the only outlet to make a relatively quick call. The New York Times posted its call declaring Trump the winner at 8:48 p.m.; NBC News made its call at 8:39 p.m., only three minutes later than the AP.

The calls came even as the caucuses were still going on in many places. In contrast, in primary elections, the other means by which state voters select a party nominee, news outlets usually avoid making calls until after polls have closed to avoid the possibility of affecting the result.