SILVER CITY, Iowa (KMTV) —
- Video shows a small town in Iowa under a blanket of snow, but Mayor Sharon McNutt's home is cozy and she's baking cookies. She and her husband, Gary, discuss the Iowa caucus in their living room.
- Sharon McNutt is the mayor of tiny, southwest Iowa town, Silver City. She has been hosting the local caucus in her living room, every two years, since 2002. Sharon and Gary both say there is value in face-to-face connection and conversation between neighbors. The Iowa caucuses give people a voice, but also require voters to be informed and engaged.
- Mayor Sharon McNutt: “It brings people together. In 2016 when we had 50 people in the house there was so much chatter you couldn’t hear yourself think for a while because people were reconnecting...”
- Gary McNutt: “There are indeed a lot of people who don’t have a voice, really, but during the caucus — they have a voice.”
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Welcome to Silver City, Iowa -- Population 245. And this place holds a special spot in my heart because I lived here until i was 7 years old. It is also home to Iowa’s last, GOP living room caucus.
Silver City Mayor Sharon McNutt is every bit the Midwest grandma.
Sharon: “I need to get the cookies...”
She was baking a test batch on Saturday, preparing for the Silver City Republican caucus.
Sharon: “It's people coming together with people they know, generally.”
Mayor McNutt has been juggling official duties with international press requests – newfound fame thanks to a Wall Street Journal article about the only living room caucus this year.
Gary McNutt: “Flyover country comes alive!”
Sharon and husband Gary — the self-titled first dude of Silver City — have been hosting caucuses at their home, every two years, since 2002.
Gary: “I'm excited to see Sharon be in the leadership role.”
Sharon: “It brings people together. In 2016 when we had 50 people in the house there was so much chatter you couldn’t hear yourself think for a while because people were reconnecting...”
Gary: “There are indeed a lot of people who don’t have a voice, really, but during the caucus — they have a voice.”
Personal connection — in a “too online” world
Gary: “If you’re face-to-face with somebody, you’re going to have to make sure that you can explain why you believe and what you believe.”
Weather combined with Trump’s apparent lead in polls, Sharon is concerned about turnout.
Sharon: “With the cold and the snow and the media saying it’s a done deal – I think there are people who will stay home ... their vote does matter. My last term as mayor, I won by one vote. 40 to 39.”
Or maybe the cookies will bring them in...
Sharon: “I am making maple pecan, and chocolate chip and cherry chocolate chip.”
On Main Street in Silver City, I'm your southwest Iowa neighborhood reporter.
