One key issue could be how the caucuses are run.
I’ve heard that a candidate needs to get at least 15% support in order for their votes to count in the caucus. If you support a candidate who has less than 15% support, then you will be asked to support another candidate. And all of this is done publicly, so that a caucus goer will be publicly persuaded to support certain candidates.
So, in such a crowded field in which some candidates will fall below 15% support, people’s 2nd choice could make a big difference.
Fake News wanted to keep Warren above 15% so she makes the second round. That prevents Bernie winning in a blow out.
The Democrats couldn’t rig the election enough for Hillary in a very crowded GOP field. The Democrats can’t even cheat well anymore, this election is going to be fun to watch.
Correctomunde:
wiki says about iowa caucuses:
“Each precinct divides its delegate seats among the candidates in proportion to caucus goers’ votes. Participants indicate their support for a particular candidate by standing in a designated area of the caucus site (forming a preference group). An area may also be designated for undecided participants. Then, for roughly 30 minutes, participants try to convince their neighbors to support their candidates. Each preference group might informally deputize a few members to recruit supporters from the other groups and, in particular, from among those undecided. Undecided participants might visit each preference group to ask its members about their candidate.
After 30 minutes, the electioneering is temporarily halted, and the supporters for each candidate are counted. At this point, the caucus officials determine which candidates are viable. Depending on the number of county delegates to be elected, the viability threshold is 15% of attendees. For a candidate to receive any delegates from a particular precinct, he or she must have the support of at least the percentage of participants required by the viability threshold. Once viability is determined, participants have roughly another 30 minutes to realign: the supporters of inviable candidates may find a viable candidate to support, join together with supporters of another inviable candidate to secure a delegate for one of the two, or abstain. This realignment is a crucial distinction of caucuses in that (unlike in a primary) a voter’s second choice can help a candidate.”