WATERLOO - A diverse field of presidential candidates, combined with aggressive, tailored outreach, has generated exceptionally high interest in the caucuses in the black community.

African-Americans in Waterloo so far seem to mirror Democrats in the rest of the state - they're mulling the three leading presidential candidates, but leaning toward Barack Obama.

While people are quick to praise Hillary Clinton, the buzz in churches, barber shops and beauty salons seem to favor Obama less than three weeks before the caucuses.

A new poll released by Lee Enterprises, the Courier's parent company, echoed that assessment: Obama leads the pack with 33 percent, followed by Clinton and John Edwards, each at 24 percent.

"The people I talk to here, and especially with African-Americans, it's Obama, Obama, Obama," acknowledged Joy Lowe, a longtime friend and supporter of John and Elizabeth Edwards. "I've never seen anything like this, not even with (former presidential contender) Jesse Jackson."

Take a drive down East Fourth Street and through sizable African-American neighborhoods, and it's hard not to notice a similar trend in the yard signs lining the streets - Obama, Obama, Obama. Not be ignored, though, are the splashes of Edwards and Clinton signs. Add it all up, and it could be a record year for voter turnout, said Michael Blackwell, Black Hawk County Democrats vice chairman.

"I attribute that to the number of candidates running, and also the fact there have been a lot of candidates - some more than others - that have sought to reach out directly to the African-American community," Blackwell said.

Campaigns have implemented unprecedented outreach efforts towards blacks in a city where the number of African-Americans roughly equals the national average - 12 percent. It is a sizeable population, especially in a state with an approximately 2 percent black population.

The campaigns have set up offices close to African-American neighborhoods. The Obama and Edwards campaigns share an office building on the eastern edge of downtown Waterloo, and Clinton's campaign is just a few blocks away at the other end of downtown.

They have also hired black staffers to knock on doors, meet with community leaders at churches and organize house parties.

"They're hitting the ground and hitting the churches. They're talking to the parishioners, talking on the streets," said the Rev. J.R. Burt, board chairman of Eastside Ministerial Alliance. "They've been very adamant, and weather has not been a deterring factor."

Burt said he is impressed, in particular, by the efforts of the Clinton and Obama campaigns. While Clinton's staffers have been in the community longer, he's noticed Obama's people making a concerted push as the caucuses approach. Just last week, he said, he met with both campaigns. Others, like Nation of Islam Minister Michael Muhammad, appreciate Edwards' willingness to make poverty a centerpiece of his campaign.

The candidates themselves have made an effort to visit Waterloo's east side to connect with black voters. Clinton stopped at the Cunningham School for Excellence last month and Waterloo East High School last spring. Obama has been a frequent visitor, stopping at the Boys and Girls Club, Cunningham and local churches over the past nine months.

At Gray's Barber Shop last week, Princeton University professor and author Cornel West, also famous for his involvement in the Matrix movies, stopped by to talk to about a dozen people on behalf of Obama.

Though better-known among the older generation, West, wearing a tight-fitting suit and scarf around his neck, inspired awed reactions from some younger men. He didn't talk much about Obama, but his visit got the men thinking and talking about the Illinois senator.

Brandon Ross, a student at Hawkeye Community College, said he recently saw West on TV during a hip-hop awards show. He was planning on caucusing for the first time, in large part due to the persistence of Obama local field organizer, Maria Thomas. Thanks to her repeated reminders, he said, he even knew the location of his caucus site.

"She pulled me into the caucus - over at McKinstry (Elementary)," he said. "I'm going to be there."

Like some others at the shop, he expressed disappointment that by supporting Obama he couldn't also back Hillary Clinton. As a man sitting in a barber chair put it, "She's got the name," a reference to her husband, Bill Clinton, who enjoys popularity with some in the black community.

But ultimately, Ross said, he is excited to caucus because of a strong feeling that "change is going to happen." It is a sentiment shared by fellow Obama supporters.

"Even if he does not win, I will be able to say to my grandchildren, 'Your grandmother voted for this man,'" said Lou Porter, director of KBBG-FM. "To me, that's important."

But whether or not that interest translates to more votes on caucus night remains to be seen. Joy Lowe, the Edwards supporter, wants the added interest to drive more voters out on caucus night, even if it means more support for another candidate. But she remains skeptical.

"I've been going out to caucuses for 30 years now, since Jimmy Carter, and you get there and half the people who were claiming to support a candidate don't show up," she said. "I'm hoping this will be different. But I guess we'll just have to wait and see if they'll actually caucus."

Contact Jens Manuel Krogstad at (319) 291-1580 or jens.krogstad@wcfcourier.com.