The Iowa Democratic party chair who is refusing to release raw vote totals from Monday’s state caucuses is a long-time Hillary Clinton supporter who donated to the politician’s various campaigns and who reportedly drives a Buick with the license plate “HRC 2016.”
Dr. Andrea “Andy” McGuire has shot down calls to review vote tallies from Monday’s contest despite Clinton’s razor-thin win over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. The former secretary of state squeaked by the democratic socialist, hauling in 49.9 percent of state delegate equivalents versus Sanders’ 49.6 percent.
The Clinton campaign claimed complete victory in the caucuses on Tuesday despite the close vote. But others, including the Sanders campaign, are questioning the outcome, citing paperwork irregularities and coin flips that awarded county delegates in some precincts.
In a column published in the Des Moines Register on Thursday, the paper’s editorial board called Monday’s caucuses a “debacle” and said that a complete audit was in order.
“First of all, the results were too close not to do a complete audit of results,” reads the article, entitled “Something smells in the Democratic party.”
“Two-tenths of 1 percent separated Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. A caucus should not be confused with an election, but it’s worth noting that much larger margins trigger automatic recounts in other states,” the editorial reads.
The paper called on McGuire, who once ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor, to embrace transparency by releasing raw vote totals.
“So her path forward is clear: Work with all the campaigns to audit results. Break silly party tradition and release the raw vote totals. Provide a list of each precinct coin flip and its outcome, as well as other information sought by the Register. Be transparent,” the editors write, noting that the Sanders campaign is reviewing precinct tallies and claims to have found irregularities.
But McGuire, the former president of Meridian Health, has so far resisted calls for a review of the vote.
“The answer is that we had all three camps in the tabulation room last night to address any grievances brought forward, and we went over any discrepancies. These are the final results,” she told the Register.
There’s plenty of reason to question McGuire’s objectivity, however.
A Daily Caller analysis of federal campaign finance records shows that McGuire has contributed $7,139 to Clinton’s campaigns over the years. On Dec. 29, 2008 she donated to Hill PAC, a political action committee set up for Clinton. On Sept. 30, 2007 McGuire gave $2,300 to Clinton’s presidential campaign. She donated $588.80 to the campaign on June 27, 2007. And on June 7, 2005, McGuire gave $4,000 to Clinton’s Senate campaign.
According to a 2007 New York Times article, McGuire hosted a fundraiser for Clinton at her Des Moines home.
Besides the financial ties, McGuire is close to Clinton in other ways. In 2007 she was appointed to the Women’s Leadership Council for Team Hillary, a group of 250 women whose goal was to help Clinton reach the White House. She also served as Iowa co-chairwoman on Clinton’s campaign during that election.
McGuire, who claimed that she would be objective when she took over the Iowa Democratic party last year, has also reportedly put her affection for Clinton on public display. According to a 2014 Des Moines Register article, the former physician drives a Buick with a license plate that reads: “HRC 2016.”
McGuire did not return a request for comment. Nor did the Sanders campaign.