Iowa Caucus App

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I really shouldn't laugh so much at someone else's misfortune or frustration. Still, as a 20+ year software developer, I have to wonder why anyone would have expected the plan to use a brand new “app” to count votes for the Iowa caucus to actually work out. It is never a good idea to make the first real-world use of a new application be something important and so publicly visible.

Reuters: No Iowa caucus results spark Democrat frustration; Trump gloats

The Democratic Party's effort to choose an election challenger to Donald Trump got off to a chaotic start in Iowa, with officials blaming “inconsistencies” for an indefinite delay in the state's caucus results and the president gloating over his rivals’ misfortune.

Associated Press: Red-faced Democrats struggle to announce caucus results

In a statement early Tuesday, the Iowa Democratic Party blamed a “coding issue in the reporting system” that it said has since been fixed. The problem kept party officials from releasing results from Monday's caucus, the much-hyped kickoff to the 2020 primary. It was an embarrassing twist after months of promoting the contest as a chance …

New York Times: ‘A Systemwide Disaster’: How the Iowa Caucuses Melted Down

Unexplained “inconsistencies” in results, heated conference calls and firm denials of hacking left the contest in a strange state of almost suspended animation.

Los Angeles Times: Iowa caucus results might not be fully released today, party official warns

Iowa caucus results, which were not released Monday night because of reporting problems, might not come out Tuesday, Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Troy Price said. “While our plan is to release results as soon as possible today, our ultimate goal is to ensure that the integrity and accuracy of the process continues to be upheld,” Price …

Bloomberg on MSN.com: Iowa Caucus Meltdown Tied to Democrats’ Little-Tested App

The breakdown in reporting results from Iowa's Democratic caucuses appears tied to failures in a mobile application that may not have been ready for the load of a statewide election and which the head of the Homeland Security Department said wasn't subjected to a cybersecurity test by his agency.

Time: Iowa's First-in-the-Nation Caucuses Devolve Into Chaos Over Technical Problems and ‘Inconsistencies’

The first contest in the 2020 presidential election devolved into chaos Monday night as the results of Iowa's Democratic caucuses were badly delayed. A state Democratic Party official cited “inconsistencies” in some results as one reason for the wait. Hours after the caucuses began at nearly 1,700 precinct sites around the state …

And so on, and so on . . .