The campaign for Martin O’Malley held house parties around the state, one of which was hosted by Bob Beisch. Even in an age of technology, the basic laws of nature still prevent a person from being in multiple places at the same time. O’Malley wasn’t at Beisch’s home, though the campaign did plan a teleconference to bring him to the parties digitally.

What Beisch hosted was the image of the Iowa caucus campaign, where people gather in small spaces, living rooms and coffee shops and talk politics. Tyler Dillon, a field organizer for the campaign, spoke about pestering O’Malley’s early organization into a position with it because he believed in the candidate.

“I found that a lot of my personal, progressive beliefs aligned with him,” Dillon said. “It just kept going, a huge checklist. ‘Wow, I really like that idea. Wow, I had never thought about that in that way.’”

Not everyone who attended was a confirmed O’Malley supporter. Even Beisch, the former chair of the Wapello County Democrats, has not committed to his candidacy. “Chances are I will,” he said, “but I don’t know for sure yet.”

So what emerged was, in Dillon’s words, “a conversation within the Democratic Party.” Comments by O’Malley supporters aimed at persuasion, while the attitude from those who were not O’Malley backers was more “convince me,” than “you’re wrong.”