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Iowa is home to the Field of Dreams, the location of the 1989 movie of the same name. The film introduced the phrase “build it, and they will come” into the nation’s lexicon and, while sometimes over-used, it’s as good an explanation as any for what’s happening in the state as the 2008 caucuses loom.

Build it the candidates have, at least most of them. While some of the big names like Rudy Giuliani and John McCain made strategic decisions to basically skip the state, or at least de-emphasize its importance to their campaigns, most have put their all into it. Months filled with stump speeches, question and answer sessions and the ingestion of just about any kind of food you can think of that could possibly be served on a stick at the state’s fairs, they have “built it.”

But will “they” come? Campaign operatives and political observers of all stripes have spent the better part of the last two days chewing over the results of the Des Moines Register poll which, if accurate in its findings on turnout, signals a dramatic shift in voting behavior in the state. The most striking findings were among likely Democratic caucus goers. The poll showed that, among those who said they were likely to caucus, 60 percent would be attending one for the very first time and 40 percent were identified as Independents.

For a process in the past dominated by a relatively small core of party activists, having so many first-timers and independents would be nothing less than shocking. Campaign operatives quickly questioned the poll’s turnout predictions, with even the Barack Obama campaign sounding cautious about a poll which showed their candidate with a sizable lead. Pundits are quick to point out that other polls, taken around the same time, show the race much closer.

Much of the debate has been about the intricate details of polling – which lists are used, how independents are identified, etc. But those arguments may be missing the bigger picture, which is that it is not inconceivable that the presidential campaigns have “built” something unique in Iowa.

For Obama, first-time Independents have been a focus of his outreach efforts, for Clinton, it’s been first-time women. With the unprecedented micro-level of targeting individuals for the caucuses – and more time spent at it than ever before – it shouldn’t be a shock to anyone that this year’s voters would look quite a bit different than they have in the past.

“Iowa? I could have sworn this was Heaven,” said Ray Kinsella’s ghostly father in the movie. It may be a line that ends up in someone’s victory speech tomorrow night.