This weekend will be a Republican election throwback throw-down.

The Republican presidential caucus is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Knicely Conference Center in Bowling Green. GOP faithful at Knicely and other sites around Kentucky will have a chance to resonate a heartfelt expression of “We the People” in exercising their right to vote, Warren County caucus chairman David Graham said.

“This is our chance. This is an important election. I think it is positive for the state,” Graham said.

Kentucky’s caucus is one of the last contests to award convention delegates proportionally, he said. If a candidate receives 5 percent of the vote, they will receive some of the delegates.

Turning back the clock, Kentucky Republicans have a chance to impact the GOP presidential race for the first time in years, and Warren County will use paper ballots and hand counting rather than the normal electronic ballots and vote-scanning machines.

The old hand count will be in full swing Saturday evening in Bowling Green, a day after county Republicans celebrate the legacy of President Abraham Lincoln with their Lincoln Day Dinner.

The announcement of the results, however, will be all high-tech.

The caucus results will be announced at 6 p.m. CST on the Republican Party of Kentucky website. No local results will be released at the Knicely Conference Center, Graham said.

Kentucky’s caucus is still early in the overall process as the GOP presidential candidates seek to nail down the required 1,237 delegates to be nominated at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

New York billionaire businessman Donald Trump has captured the most delegates thus far with 319. Trailing Trump are two U.S. senators, Ted Cruz of Texas with 226, and Marco Rubio of Florida with 110. Ohio Gov. John Kasich has 25 delegates.

Retired neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson has eight. Carson said Wednesday that he would not attend the GOP presidential debate Thursday in Detroit and plans to meet Friday with the Conservative Political Action Conference about his political future.

“I do not see a political path forward in light of last evening’s Super Tuesday primary results,” Carson said on his website Wednesday. “However, this grassroots movement on behalf of ‘We the People’ will continue.”

The debate will begin at 8 p.m. CST. It had been billed as a homecoming for Carson, who is from Detroit, according to MLive.com. The debate will be at the Fox Theatre and be broadcast on Fox News and online at foxnews.com.

The retired neurosurgeon insisted Tuesday night that he was “not ready to quit” despite a poor showing in Super Tuesday states.

Graham said representatives from the Trump, Cruz, Rubio and Carson campaigns will be at the Knicely Conference Center on Saturday.

Knicely will host the caucus for registered Republican voters as of Dec. 31 in Warren County.

Graham said each presidential campaign will have a table. Also with a table will be Bowling Green City Commissioner Melinda Hill, who is expected to face state House Speaker Pro Tem Jody Richards, D-Bowling Green, in the fall should she win the GOP nomination in the May 17 primary.

Graham said voters can stop at the tables or just head straight for the registration table for balloting. The Warren Republicans have enlisted the aid of about 70 volunteers to help on caucus day to go through the election books – all 33 of them.

“We’ve walked through things at the Knicely Center. We’re ready,” Graham said.

“I think they are wrong,” Graham said of published reports that predict a mediocre turnout across Kentucky. “If the state has a 20 percent turnout, that will be more than the turnout in the governor’s race.”

Graham said local media and social media have kept people notified of the upcoming GOP caucus.

The 48-year-old Bowling Green man said he’s never had the opportunity to vote in a presidential primary where it might make a difference.

The Kentucky vote falls the same day as the Kansas caucuses, the Louisiana presidential primary and Maine’s Republican caucus.

All 11 Republican presidential candidates will appear on the paper ballot, including U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Bowling Green. Paul dropped out of the presidential race following the Iowa caucuses, characterizing his presidential ambition in terms similar to those expressed by Carson – that there was not a pathway to victory.

“We will have signs reminding people who is still in the race,” Graham said.

Rubio, who captured Minnesota on Super Tuesday, announced Wednesday in an email that he’s received several Kentucky endorsements. Locally, he is endorsed by Edmonson County Judge-Executive Wil Cannon; former Barren County Judge-Executive Davie Greer; state Sen. C.B. Embry Jr., R-Morgantown; state Rep. Jim DeCesare, R-Bowling Green; state Rep. Michael Meredith, R-Brownsville; Simpson County Judge-Executive Jim Henderson; Jeff Jennings, Butler County GOP chairman; John McCarthy, former Kentucky GOP chairman; and Richie Sanders, former Kentucky state senator from Franklin.

Voting places in the region are Allen County, James E. Bazzell Middle School; Barren County, Glasgow Christian Academy; Butler County, Morgantown Elementary School; Edmonson County, Edmonson County Community Center; Hart County, Munfordville Elementary School; Logan County, Logan County GOP headquarters; and Simpson County, Simpson County Courthouse.

Republican voters must have acceptable forms of voter identification. Those include personal acquaintance, motor vehicle operator’s license, Social Security card, credit card or an identification card with a picture and signature. The official roster of voters eligible to participate in a county or regional caucus is provided by the RPK state headquarters and will reflect voter registration records obtained from the Kentucky State Board of Elections.

— For more on the caucus, visit www.rpk.org.

— Follow business reporter Charles A. Mason on Twitter at twitter.com/BGDNbusiness or visit bgdailynews.com.

http://www.bgdailynews.com/special_sections/election/

Warren County

Knicely Center, 2355 Nashville Rd., Bowling Green, KY 42101

Barren County

Glasgow Christian Academy, 600 Old Cavalry Dr. Glasgow, KY 42141

Allen County

James E. Bazzell Middle School, 201 New Gallatin Rd Scottsville, KY 42164

Logan County

Logan County GOP HQ, 115 S Main St., Russellville, KY 42276

Butler County

Morgantown Elementary School, 210 W Cemetery St., Morgantown, KY 42261

Edmonson County

Edmonson County Community Center, 108 N Main St., Brownsville, KY 42210

Simpson County

Simpson County Courthouse, 110 Courthouse Sq., Franklin, KY 42134

Hart County

Munfordville Elementary School, 505 W Union St., Munfordville, KY 42765

Monroe County

Monroe County Middle School, 600 E Main St., Tompkinsville, KY 42167

Todd County

Milliken Memorial Community House, 208 W Main St., Elkton, KY 42220

Adair County

Adair County High School, 526 Indian Dr., Columbia, KY 42728