Iowa Shmiowah.

Forget all this Midwest madness -- this primary season, California's finally getting its due!

Okay, not really. But the Golden State is definitely playing a more exciting role in the primary elections than it has in previous election years. Mayor Villaraigosa has been bringing some West Coast flavor to chilly Iowa as he campaigns for Hillary Clinton, while City Council President Eric Garcetti is laying it down for Barack Obama.

Obama's rolling out his campaign callers to woo California's mail-in voters (who, according to Capitol Weekly, could make up to half of total voters) -- but that may simply be part of his larger philosophy of being the president of the UNITED States of America. (Alaskan voters seem pleased with the Illinois senator, the only candidate to open up a campaign headquarters there. Idaho voters are marveling at the polite tenacity of Obama canvassers.)

Unlike Obama, Rudy Giuliani isn't casting a wider net. Instead, he's skipping the early states and heading to the larger, delegate-rich ones -- and Florida is first on the list. But since California, unlike Florida, hasn't been stripped of half its delegates for cutting in the primaries line, it might mean more play for the West Coast in the near future.

P.S. If you're looking to make California count a little earlier too, you can find instructions for absentee ballots and download the forms here.