How Nevada Democratic Caucus system works

Here's how the Nevada caucus system works for the Democrats:




FOR DEMOCRATS

Nevadans don't need to be registered as Democrats — or registered at all — before coming to the caucus. The same-day sign-up option helped the party register 30,000 new Democratic voters in 2008.

Caucus-goers break into groups that declare their support for a candidate. If the number of people in any group is under 15 percent of the total at the caucus, they can either choose not to participate or join another candidate group.

The caucus is advertised as starting at 11 a.m., although people can participate as long as they get in line by noon. And they are expected to end by early afternoon, though there is not a set time.

The results are the first step in determining delegates who are expected to support candidates at the national convention. Democrats will send a total of 43 delegates to the national convention, but only 23 are directly tied to the results of the Saturday caucus.

Eight Democratic party leaders and elected officials are "superdelegates" and can vote for any candidate they like at the national convention. Three declared for Hillary Clinton, one for Bernie Sanders and four haven't said.

An additional 12 delegates are "at large" and will be decided by a vote at the state convention.