Iowa Democratic Party Chair faults “coding issue” in new app for slowed caucus result reporting, results coming later today
John Deeth, volunteer from Johnson County Democrats, recounts before assigning delegates during the caucus at the Iowa Memorial Union on Monday Feb. 3, 2020.
February 4, 2020
Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Troy Price released an updated statement on the delayed caucus results, faulting a “coding issue” in the reporting system.
“While the app was recording data accurately, it was reporting out only partial data. We have determined that this was due to a coding issue in the reporting system,” Price said in the prepared statement. “This issue was identified and fixed. The application’s reporting issue did not impact the ability of precinct chairs to report data accurately.”
According to Price, precinct results are still being reported in, and the party plans to release results today.
Johnson County Democratic caucus organizer John Deeth said that the app gave him trouble when he tried to use it in his precinct to report results.
“It didn’t affect the caucus itself; it certainly slowed things down with reporting the results,” Deeth said.
Read the full statement from Price, the Democratic Party leader in iowa below:
“Last night, more than 1,600 precinct caucuses gathered across the state of Iowa and at satellite caucuses around the world to demonstrate our shared values and goal of taking back the White House. The many volunteers running caucus sites, new voters registering as Democrats, and neighbors talking to each other about the future of our country demonstrated the strength of our party.
We have every indication that our systems were secure and there was not a cyber security intrusion. In preparation for the caucuses, our systems were tested by independent cybersecurity consultants.
As precinct caucus results started coming in, the IDP ran them through an accuracy and quality check. It became clear that there were inconsistencies with the reports. The underlying cause of these inconsistencies was not immediately clear, and required investigation, which took time.
As this investigation unfolded, IDP staff activated pre-planned backup measures and entered data manually. This took longer than expected.
As part of our investigation, we determined with certainty that the underlying data collected via the app was sound. While the app was recording data accurately, it was reporting out only partial data. We have determined that this was due to a coding issue in the reporting system. This issue was identified and fixed. The application’s reporting issue did not impact the ability of precinct chairs to report data accurately.
Because of the required paper documentation, we have been able to verify that the data recorded in the app and used to calculate State Delegate Equivalents is valid and accurate. Precinct level results are still being reported to the IDP. 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.”
