DES MOINES, Iowa — Since 1972, Iowa has been the first stop for presidential candidates.
It’s a tradition that has brought a lot of attention to the rural Midwestern state, but some people argue it's time for a change.
"It's really brought up the conversation of how representative Iowa is and it really brought up the question of why does Iowa always get to go first?" University of Minnesota political science professor Kathryn Pearson says.
Several elected officials, political commentators, and voters went on social media to make this argument and Pearson says their concerns are valid.
According to the latest census, Iowa ranks 31st in population, is 91% white compared to 76% nationwide, and the state is mostly rural.
So, the results coming out of Iowa aren't exactly a perfect reflection of the rest of the country.
"There has long been criticism that it should rotate. It shouldn't always be Iowa," Pearson says.
These concerns wouldn’t be as big of a problem if the Iowa caucuses came later in the primary season, but with Iowa being first, Pearson says the state has a lot of power.
“Iowa contributes so much to a candidate’s momentum. Candidates come out of Iowa with either a real boost or are really hindered because of a poor performance.”
Besides the state itself, there's also criticism about the way the state uses caucuses instead of primaries.
Pearson says with primaries, people can vote in a few minutes at any time of the day, but with caucuses, they have to commit several hours of their time.
"Caucuses tend to be unrepresentative even of the populations they come from, because you need to take time out of your night and you can’t take your kids if you’re a parent,” Pearson says.
“Caucuses really are a big burden for people who may have two jobs, who are lower income, or who just don't want to discuss politics with their neighbor."
Besides Iowa, the only other states that hold caucuses are Nevada and Wyoming on the Democrat side.
Republicans also host them in a few U.S. Territories.
Pearson says some benefits of caucusing are they give voters more access to their candidates and they give the parties a chance to rally their base.
But with all the issues we've mentioned and the problems Monday night, Pearson says this time honored tradition may soon come to an end.
"Reformers really need to think hard about whether or not a new nominating contest would produce better results for the parties and would be more representative."
Many have come forward to defend Iowa and the caucus system.
Iowa's Republican Governor says the technical problem shouldn't change this time honored tradition.
President Donald Trump also tweeted in favor of Iowa saying, "As long as I'm president, Iowa is staying where it is."