ROBERT SIEGEL, Host:
This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Robert Siegel.
MELISSA BLOCK, Host:
In Iowa, the campaign rallies, over. The ads, no more. The bus trips, the baby kissing, pie eating, the diner visits and the hand shakes, done. More than a year of run-up as history and the Iowa caucuses are underway.
SIEGEL: They've began just a few minutes ago and we should start getting preliminary results within an hour. Going in, the race was the tight on both sides. For the Republicans, poll show Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee at the top of the pack. For the Democrats, it's a three-way race according to the polls, with John Edwards, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama pulling about even.
BLOCK: NPR has reporters at campaign headquarters for candidates of both parties. We've also got analysts and commentators standing by. We'll check in with many of them this hour. We're going to begin where the action is or at least at one of the places where the action is, where going to the town of Nevada, Iowa, which (unintelligible) in the center of the state.
SIEGEL: Linda, what's going on?
LINDA WERTHEIMER: There are a lot of people in the cafeteria. There's another caucus going on in the high school library. There's one over in the middle school cafeteria as well. There is a tremendous amount of interest in this one, apparently. People are liking their candidates, and they thought, you know, it was close, it's exciting, there's a lot of energy so they're here.
SIEGEL: Now, this is just one precinct caucus and not at all representative but you've talked with people there, what are you hearing from them?
WERTHEIMER: There are two basketball games. There was cheerleader practice. And now there are, well, three caucuses in this building and more all around us in various venues around the town. This is about 5,000 people.
SIEGEL: It sounds like a big night in Nevada. And we'll be checking with you a little later. Thanks a lot, Linda.
WERTHEIMER: Right.
SIEGEL: That's NPR's Linda Wertheimer in Nevada, Iowa.