Dems move to make South Carolina, not Iowa, 1st voting state

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats have voted to remove Iowa as the leadoff state on the presidential nominating calendar and replace it with South Carolina starting in 2024. President Joe Biden argues that the dramatic shakeup, which he endorsed, will better reflect the party’s deeply diverse electorate. The Democratic National Committee’s rule-making arm made the move Friday to strip Iowa from the position it has held for five decades after technical meltdowns sparked chaos and marred results of the state’s 2020 caucus. The move will still have to be approved by the full DNC in a vote likely early next year, but it will almost certainly follow the rule-making committee’s lead.