At 7 p.m. CST Monday night, citizens across the state of Iowa will cast their votes for the Democratic and Republican presidential primaries in a complicated process known as the caucus.
The Iowa caucuses are confusing not only because they involve many moving parts and seemingly arbitrary rules, but because the two major parties differ in how they conduct their respective process.
And yet: the Iowa caucuses are the first primary vote in the nation, and are considered an important bellwether for how candidates may fare for the rest of the the election cycle.
For a simple look at how this difficult process works, check out the Newsy video above.