Democratic caucuses in Maine. The series of presidential primary elections and caucuses is one of the first steps in the process of electing the President of the United States of America.
The primary elections are run by state and local governments, while caucuses are private events run by the political parties. A state primary election usually is an indirect election: instead of voters directly selecting a particular person running for president, it determines how many delegates to each party's national convention each candidate will receive from the state.