Analysis: Iowa Caucus Day is the first US election litmus test to see which of the candidates' runs for the presidency is going somewhere, writes US Correspondent Logan Church.
It's hard to describe how cold -25C is. It's the sort of temperature where if you stand in it for more than a few minutes, it stops feeling cold. Any part of exposed skin goes numb and pink.
The sort of temperature where the TV camera dies half an hour before our news bulletin because the internals froze. Great fun.
Welcome to Iowa Caucus Day, the first US election litmus test to see which of the candidates' messages are getting cut through, and who has been spending a whole lot of money for nothing.
The Iowa Caucus sees members of each party vote for the man or woman they want as their party's presidential nominee. For the Republicans, this is taking place later today. For the Democrats, results of a mail-in ballot will be released on Super Tuesday in March - the day where the largest number of states carry out their primaries.
"The diehards will be here, be out, without any problem, whatever it takes, and the people who are on the fence will probably stay home and watch it on TV," Des Moines resident David Laskowski told 1News.
"It's awfully cold, we don't usually get this much snow - we get snow but not this much snow, not 10 or 12 inches like we've had twice in the past week."
Des Moines, home to the Iowa State Capitol, is a peaceful city most of the time, but once every four years every hotel room is filled with journalists, camera crews, and campaign staff.
On my flight here I sat next to a team from a Canadian television network, who provided great company as we remained stuck on the runway due to the plane in front of us in our gate being covered in ice and unable to move.
The airport staff also couldn't get the airbridge working in the snow so had to essentially build a bridge for us between it and the aircraft door and hold us as we walked across it. The baggage bins weren't working either as the ice had sealed them shut. We felt so sorry for the handlers and wondered if we should offer to help.
Locals on the flight were telling me they were a little sick of the constant campaigning that the presidential candidates had been hitting their state with.
One man pulled out his phone and showed me the endless automated text messages: "Donald Trump needs you!" or "Five reasons why Ron DeSantis wants you to vote tomorrow."
"I'm not even a registered Republican," he laughed.
But as the sleepy city woke this morning, many felt apprehensive about not just the vote, but the year to come.
"I'm a little nervous about it all. It seems like in the last few years in the states there has been a powder keg of concern, so I'm hoping the next season goes well," said Dan Sherman, who runs a physical therapy business in the centre of Des Moines.
"I have young kids, looking to set an example for them, and with a quality candidate that treats the position with respect. Whoever that may be. I want America to be looked on highly."
"Do you think there are quality candidates out there?" I asked.
"Ah that's hard to answer and it always depends on what stance you have."
While some candidates are still campaigning, and practically begging people to turn up despite the cold (Trump said yesterday they should turn up even if they are sick), they have done all they can. As I write this, the Iowa Republican party is setting up Caucus spaces across the state, in halls, churches, and community centres.
Most of the candidates are going to spend the evening at their own events with their campaign staff and their most loyal supporters, who want to catch up with them after the Caucus meeting.
It's somewhat ironic that so much attention is on Iowa. It's a small state, doesn't really have much of an influence on the outcome of the national election, and there is no guarantee that if you do well here you will win the presidency (or vice versa - in the last presidential election Joe Biden came fourth).
But given it's the first state where the Republican Party's faithful make their picks, on offer here is momentum. If the rest of the country sees that you have done well here, that might result in your doing well elsewhere. It might even carry you to the White House.
This is, of course, politics - where the difference between perception and reality isn't something that often matters.
Tune into 1News at 6pm tonight and 1News.co.nz for our coverage of the Iowa caucuses.
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