Joe Biden's challenge in Iowa: Going from great on paper to standing out in crowded, diverse field

Joe Biden looks great on paper right now.

He’s led each of the past two Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa Polls surveying the massive Democratic field. He's got sky-high name recognition and favorability ratings. And he benefits from the perception that he is among the field’s most “electable” Democrats — a distinction that carries weight among likely caucusgoers, who are desperate to defeat incumbent Republican President Donald Trump.

But all of that polling was conducted before Biden ever began campaigning in 2020.

Now, after returning to Iowa for the first time as a declared 2020 candidate, Biden will have to persuade Iowa caucusgoers to support him not just because of his past role as a beloved former vice president, but for what he brings to the most crowded and diverse field of presidential candidates in history.

Read more: https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2019/05/02/joe-biden-iowa-caucus-2020-democrat-campaign-organization-strategy-building-first-trip-des-moines-ia/3651408002/