The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

    O’Malley turns to ‘Game of Thrones’

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Autumn is full upon us, which means only one thing: Winter is coming.

And the Martin O’Malley campaign is trying to ramp up efforts as Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucuses approach in February.

The former Maryland governor’s campaign will start its phone-bank sessions in October, and they have a “Game of Thrones” theme. The HBO hit series, which has the motto “winter is coming,” is the inspiration for the “Game of Phones” challenge.

The state of Iowa will be broken up into five regions, each representing the different houses from the show — Targaryen, Lannister, Tyrell, Martell, and Stark. The regions will face off against each other as well as the O’Malley’s Iowa headquarters, which will be Kings Landing.

The winner will be based on the number of calls made by supporters in each region.

The campaign is trying to attract young voters. O’Malley has tried to appeal to the student demographic, and he has visited Iowa City twice since the University of Iowa fall semester began.

O’Malley gets 4 percent of Iowans’ support, according to an NBC News/Marist poll this month. With 345 Democratic likely caucus-goers surveyed, there was a margin of error of plus or minus 5.3 percentage points.

Those who would like to participate can phone bank at any location — from their house to a local coffee shop. In addition, O’Malley for Iowa supporters can also participate at three local field offices: Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, and Sioux City. The competition will take place from Oct. 3-4.

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