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Published December 23, 2015
Steve Scheffler, head of the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition an Iowa GOP Central Committee member, tells Fox News he has been pushing for a meeting in the next ten days to quickly pick a date for the 2012 Iowa Caucuses.
With states breaking RNC rules and leap-frogging the political calendar, there were fears in Iowa that the caucuses may have to move into December. Already the earliest nomination contest announced is Nevada, which will hold its caucuses on January 14th.
New Hampshire is expected to announce a date for its primary which would land at least seven-days earlier, possibility on January 7th.
Meanwhile Dave Fischer, an IA Central Committee member, tells Fox News he believes "there is a consensus" among fellow-committee members that the 2012 Iowa Caucuses will be held January 3rd.
In a conference call among committee members, Fischer says, "It was pretty clear by the end of the call that January 3rd was the best date."
Fischer notes an official meeting of the ruling body of the Iowa GOP requires a 10-day notice. So, even if the entire 20-person panel agreed, the state party would need to announce the meeting and wait ten days before making any date official.
Asked if he was concerned that New Hampshire may under-cut Iowa's first-in-the-nation status by scheduling its primaries on the same date or earlier, Fischer says committee members were not focused on that.
By Iowa law, the caucuses must be eight days prior to any other state presidential contest. By the letter of the law, that would be at the earliest, December 30th.
But the date of January 3rd has been floating about in Republican circles as a possible acceptable alternative.
"I think the caucuses have to be in January," says Scheffler.
No date has been set for a Central Committee meeting. The committee is the party's governing body and generally has final word on all major decisions.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/when-are-the-iowa-caucuses-possible-answer-in-coming-days