Cindy Gross, owner of the Grounds Keeper Cafe in Racine, Wi. offers a "coffee bean caucus." Customers vote for their favorite presidential candidate by dropping a coffee bean in a jar. (AP Photo/Journal Times, Mark Hertzberg)

Primary Matters

Every four years Wisconsin holds a presidential primary election. For decades, the primary has played a large role in which two candidates face each other in the final election for president.

Past Wisconsin primaries have been exciting events. This year's primary is likely to be much less exciting than in the past.

The Wisconsin primary used to be one of the first contests in the race. It got a lot of attention because it was one of the earlier races. Things have changed. Many states have scheduled their primaries before Wisconsin's primary.

The Wisconsin election is February 19th. However, 22 of the 50 states will hold contests on February 5th. That date has become known as "Super Tuesday."

The balloting on Super Tuesday could decide which candidates get nominated for the November election. The entire nation will vote for president on November 4th.

Sixteen candidates have qualified to have their names on the ballot for the Wisconsin primary. However, some of them have already withdrawn from the race.

They quit because of poor showings in states like Iowa and New Hampshire. Both of those states held contests in early January. Other candidates may drop out after Super Tuesday.

No need to pick a party
Some states require voters to register as either Democrats, Republicans or Independents. The major political parties are the Democrats and Republicans. Independents are not a political party. Wisconsin does not require voters to chose a party when they register.

None of the candidates visited Wisconsin in the first few weeks of 2008. That is another sign that the state's primary is not as critical to the candidates as it used to be. But it is still important to vote.

Wisconsin ranks 20th among states in the number of people who live in it. The state will have the 20th most delegates. Your vote can decide which candidate will get those delegate votes and who will be the party nominee.

The winner of the Republican primary and the Democratic primary will take Wisconsin's delegates to the nominating convention. Each party holds a convention in late summer. The actual nominee gets the final approval for the nomination at the convention. But the outcome is usually clear shortly after many of the state primaries are held.

Some states do not hold primary elections. But enough do to determine who is the leading candidate going into the convention.

The leaders in the race for the Democratic convention are Illinois Senator Barack Obama and New York Senator Hillary Clinton. Former North Carolina Senator John Edwards has been trailing Obama and Clinton in the early races.

Arizona Senator John McCain is one of the leading Republican candidates. Others are former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani also is a leading contender in the Republican primary.

Wisconsin is likely to get more attention in the November election. It is considered one of the important "battleground" states. That means the final vote for president is likely to be close in Wisconsin. Candidates tend to spend less time in states where the outcome of the vote is expected to be close.