(THE GUARDIAN)
By Ben Jacobs
In November 2015 Donald Trump proclaimed to a crowd of Iowans: “How stupid are the people of Iowa?” Two months later he lost the Iowa Republican caucus. Almost a year on he may win the Hawkeye State in the presidential election.
Republicans have only won Iowa once since Ronald Reagan – in 2004, when George Bush eked out a win by 10,000 of more than 1.5 million votes. And yet, among the traditional battleground states, Iowa has become perhaps Trump’s best hope of a win. While national polls show the Republican far behind his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, recent Iowa polls have the candidates neck and neck.
Trump’s strong position is in part due to the fact that unlike in other swing states, the Iowan Republican establishment has rallied conclusively behind him.
On Saturday at the Roast and Ride, a fundraiser featuring pork sandwiches and motorcycles held on behalf of the freshman senator Joni Ernst, every major Iowa Republican was present. All three US representatives and both senators rallied behind Trump. So did Terry Branstad, the longest-serving governor in American history.
With Trump only midway through a speech that touched on hot issues such as immigration policy and his attempt to appeal to African American voters, things almost became awkward: Branstad, Ernst, congressman Steve King, lieutenant governor Kim Reynolds and state party chair Jeff Kaufmann all gathered behind the candidate, squeezing in for a photo opportunity.
As Kaufmann told the Guardian, this rare embrace of a candidate who blew the establishment to pieces in primary season and has not dialled down his rhetoric or style since came about thanks to Iowa’s vulnerable status as the state that kicks off each presidential election.
“As a first-in-the-nation state,” Kayfmann said, “our folks are discerning and even our officeholders dig a little bit deeper.”
