Republicans Move Up Caucus Date

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Iowans might wind up seeing politicians mixed in with Christmas carolers.<br/><br/>That's because Iowa Republicans have moved their presidential nominating caucuses to January

Tuesday, October 16th 2007, 9:32 pm

By: News On 6

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Iowans might wind up seeing politicians mixed in with Christmas carolers.

That's because Iowa Republicans have moved their presidential nominating caucuses to January 3rd. It's an effort to move ahead of other states scheduling early contests.

The announcement came late Tuesday after a conference call by party officials. The caucuses tentatively had been scheduled for January 14th for both parties.

Iowa's Democratic Party issued a statement after the Republicans' announcement, saying it was "planning for a January caucus that is run professionally and with integrity."

Iowa Republicans decided to move their first-in-the-nation contest even earlier on the calendar after both Florida and Michigan moved up their contests.