Government
How Iowa's Demographics Explain the Caucus Results
The state is racially homogenous but politically complex.
This Monday, the Iowa caucus kicked off the 2016 U.S. presidential elections. Within a few hours, Ted Cruz emerged the clear victor among Republicans, Donald Trump came in second place, and Marco Rubio finished third. Among the Democrats it was a tighter race, with Hillary Clinton inching ahead of Bernie Sanders in the final tally. For all intents and purposes, the Democratic caucus ended in a “virtual tie,” as Sanders said in his speech thanking supporters.
Why did Iowa vote the way it did? Some interesting demographic characteristics and trends in the state explain the results.