The Primary Concern is Delegates.

When it comes to the Presidential Election process, it is understandable to see the Primary/Caucus phase as a prediction to the actual outcome of the actual Presidential Election. A primary or a caucus (which is a type of vote that determines a candidates position in the race, and whether or not he/she is awarded delegates) is a way for candidates to win the hearts of prospective voters with swoon-worthy speeches and celebrity type appearances.

Now there are many important campaigning reasons for these primaries/caucuses. They provide candidates with the opportunity to test their chances in the race (many candidates drop out within the first few because of a low amount of votes), raise awareness for themselves as their party nomination, and the most important of all, gain delegates.

Delegates are one of the most critical weapons in a candidates arsenal, and the only way to get Delegates is to do well in primaries/caucuses. The most basic way to understand this is by looking at every state individually. Each state has a certain number of Delegates (who are appointed by the state to determine who will get party nominations). When a state holds a primary or caucus, candidates are really competing for the most delegates. The way candidates receive delegates differs from party to party.

For the Democratic Party, delegates are usually awarded by the percentage of votes that candidate receives in the primary. If a democratic candidate receives 25% of the vote in a state, then he/she is awarded with 25% of that states democratic parties delegates. It is important to note though that if a candidate does not have a percentage of 15% or higher of the vote, then that candidate is awarded not delegates.

However in the republican party the number of delegates awarded to candidates is based wholly upon how the individual state views its policies. It usually can go from a winner take all system (where the candidate with the most votes receives all of that states republican delegates) to the same type of proportional percentage system that the democratic party runs.

One interesting thing to note about this 2008 Presidential Election is that a lot of states have lost their delegates. The reason for this is that such states try to force their state into an earlier date as to increase their influence in the election. As a punishment for this, both parties have taken action to limit or completely reprimand delegates from such states.

So the next time a primary or caucus comes around remember that the most important things to the candidates are the delegates of every state. These presidential hopefuls want their spot for their party nominations set in stone, and the delegates of all 50 states, are the chisels.