The Iowa caucuses kicked off the 2012 presidential election season, while voters in Kansas and Missouri await their own versions of the town hall-type meetings later this year.
Kansas holds their caucus on March 10, and while Missouri’s primary will be Feb. 7, called by some simply a beauty contest because the Show-Me State also holds a GOP caucus, beginning March 17.
The Kansas caucus happens on the Saturday after Super Tuesday, when 10 others states have primaries and caucuses.
“I hope that the constituents in Kansas keep their ears and their eyes open for what happens here because this is also about our state,” said Sen. Julia Lynn, from Johnson County.
Many say the caucus four years ago attracted more attention to Kansas. It was the first Republican caucus in the state in 20 years.
More than 4,000 people took part in picking the state's delegates to the national convention. Kansas Republicans picked Mike Huckabee over eventual party nominee John McCain.
Lynn says the dynamic part of the caucus process is face-to-face conversation with the candidates.
“Our state can have a voice and that's also the beauty of what makes this process work,” she said.
Back in Missouri, Republicans just voted in September to move to a caucus system starting in March to stay within national GOP rules.
Lawmakers did not get rid of the now so-called meaningless and expensive primary - estimated to cost between $4 million to $8 million.
