Rural Iowa caucus site: Where everyone knows your name

OXFORD JUNCTION - The Republican caucus in tiny Oxford Junction in Jones County opened with a prayer and good-natured sibling rivalry.

Thirty-six voters met at the Gathering Place, a small community room that used to be an embalming parlor and shares space with the Peaceful Essence Massage parlor.

For all the attention on precincts in towns like Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, most of the state is blanketed by a quilt of small precincts like this one, a town with a population of less than 500.

Precinct chair Duane Wenndt, 79, a retired farmer, led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance before asking voters to bow their heads in prayer and calling on God to bless the room.

'We pray your blessings be upon us as we select the next president,” he said. 'We pray this country will be healed and there will be a revival of people getting along together in this country.”

Marlene Flory, 81, helped sign in voters. She was here four years ago, when turnout was about the same. But this time, she said, there was greater variety to that turnout - young and old faces casting votes.

Wenndt stood up to speak for Ben Carson, saying voters should choose the surgeon because he talks to God more than he talks about himself.

Brothers Richard and Loyal DeLarm, both truck drivers, were supporting different candidates. Richard, 45, spoke for Ted Cruz.

'Most of you know me,” he said. 'This is my first time doing something like this.”

He held up a script from the campaign but said he didn't want to use it.

'We put him in office - well, Texans did, people like us - and we have to support him.”

His brother Loyal, 47, jumped up to speak for Trump when no one else volunteered.

'I'll speak because my brother did,” he said, to laughter and a round of applause.

He said he likes that Trump is a businessman rather than a politician.

Their cousin Shannon Petersen sat behind them with her son Mason, 16, whom she brought along to observe, though he was too young to vote.

'I'm a firm believer that if you want change, you've got to do something, and that starts at the voting booth,” she said. 'We need more young people getting involved in politics.”

Throughout the night, from when people started walking in until they left, it was clear this was a place where everybody knows your name.

When it came time to nominate delegates, people called each other's names, often to laughter and protests from the nominees, both DeLarm brothers among them.

In the end, the room went for Trump, who took 19 votes, followed by Cruz with 11, Rubio with four and two for Ben Carson.

Susan Coon, 55, who co-owns the Gathering Place along with Coon's Corner, the town's grocery store across the street, was in charge of sending in the vote tally via a new app. There was poor cell reception in the building, however, so she walked across the street to use the wireless from a bar.

This was her second time caucusing.

'I'm just a conservative Republican, and I thought it was important,” she said.