Branstad Finishes Fifth in Northeast Iowa Straw Poll
In Northeast Iowa on Saturday, the Allamakee County Republican Party held a straw poll to gauge local support for the various candidates for Governor. Several of the candidates made good showings, including State Representative Rod Roberts who won the poll (he’s from Western Iowa and must be thrilled folks know him in Waukon) and Bob Vander Plaats, who finished second and once again proved he has a consistent base of support statewide.
The big loser? Terry Branstad. He finished all the way back at 5th, pulling in just 10 percent and beating only State Senator Jerry Behn. That is a total meltdown.
But how to explain this? Maybe Branstad just doesn’t have the name recognition? Hardly. He had four terms as Governor to make an impression. Surely Republicans heard that Branstad has been thinking about “officially” announcing his gubernatorial campaign for months now? It's been hard to escape the media coverage of Branstad’s seemingly endless announcement-to-announce.
Maybe it was because Branstad didn’t show up? Nope, Vander Plaats didn’t either and did just fine.
Here’s a more likely explanation: Iowa Republicans know Branstad’s record all too well, and are not excited in the least about a return trip to the 80s and 90s. It might just be that in the GOP primary, Roberts is pulling moderates, Vander Plaats is pulling conservatives, and Branstad is pulling up the rear.