From the Iowa Caucuses to the White House

Donald Trump won a significant victory in Iowa in 2016. Although Iowa was carried by Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, Trump won the popular vote in 93 of its 99 counties, 32 of which were carried by Obama in 2012. What explains this significant victory, in which a third of Iowa's counties were flipped? Through a mixed-methods approach, this volume demonstrates that Trump's electoral victory was shaped by three key factors: firstly, the electorate's desire for change in Washington, D.C.; secondly, Trump's successful appeals to both the Republican base and white, working-class voters who had previously supported Barack Obama; and thirdly, Iowa's conservative ideological tendency regarding immigration and race. While contributing to emerging literature on the 2016 presidential elections, this book also serves to aid educators with a published resource on Iowa's electoral politics.

Provides detailed examination of Trump's 2016 electoral victory in Iowa grounded in the literature on presidential elections and the 2016 presidential election Utilizes a mixed methods approach including quantitative modelling of county- and individual-level data, and qualitative descriptive analysis using a series of interviews and surveys of state and local party leaders As a part of a larger state by state election series, this volume helps to promote a greater understanding of campaign and candidate dynamics, electoral politics, and how they vary from state to state, including in swing states like Iowa

Autorentext
Andrew D. Green is Professor of Political Science at Central College in Pella, IA, USA.

Inhalt

1. Introduction.- 2. Description of the Campaign: From the Iowa Caucuses to the General Election.- 3. Explaining County-Level Support for Donald Trump and the Shift from 2012 to 2016.- 4. Explaining Individual-Level Support for Donald Trump.- 5. Concluding Chapter.