WSJ: Iowa voters' frustration over tariffs and Iran war worries GOP candidates
A Wall Street Journal report finds Iowa voters increasingly angry over tariffs, the Iran war, and falling farm income, leaving Republican candidates in competitive races wary of aligning too closely with President Trump.
A Wall Street Journal report paints a grim picture for Republicans in Iowa, describing voters as frustrated and discontented as economic pressures mount. The piece, published Thursday, ties the mood to the toll of tariffs and the war in Iran on farmers and rural communities, and it suggests GOP candidates are now trying to create distance from President Donald Trump as a result.
«So many people are just so angry,» Terry Arbogast, an Iowa nurse, told the Journal. Farmer Dave Struthers echoed the sentiment: «Things are hitting us more negatively.» Brian Schaer, a limestone miner in southern Iowa, added, «It's frustrating when you don't get your stuff going.» The Journal summarized the statewide sentiment bluntly: «Iowans are frustrated, discontented, and downhearted.»
The report warns that this mood «bodes ill for Republicans in November,» noting that many GOP candidates are «running scared» — ducking interviews, avoiding contentious issues, and seeking a MAGA stance that does not involve openly praising Trump. Instead, the Journal observed, they are «trying to be as generically Republican as they can.»
Iowans' pessimism is grounded in hard numbers. The Journal cited a 53 percent decline in net farm income between 2022 and 2024, and rural voters are not convinced the GOP has done enough to help them recover. Struthers listed the concerns on farmers' minds: «Tariffs, wars, corporations taking advantage, lack of competition.»
The war in Iran has added a new layer of strain. Economist Christopher Pudenz told the Journal that fertilizer prices rose sharply at the onset of the conflict due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. «The longer that conflict drags out, the more likely that it's going to impact fall fertilizer needs and then spring 2027 fertilizer needs,» he said.
Trump won Iowa three times, and the state's entire congressional delegation is Republican. Yet the Journal noted that a couple of races have become «competitive» enough to attract national political figures. Former President Barack Obama filmed a video of himself playing basketball with Democratic Senate candidate Josh Turek, a sign of Democratic investment in the state.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn acknowledged the headwinds, telling the Journal that «the first polling that came out pre-primary had me down about 10 points.» Although he closed the gap somewhat, the Cook Political Report now rates his race as «leans Democratic.» An August Emerson poll shows Lahn's Democratic opponent, State Auditor Rob Sand, leading 48 percent to 43 percent. Sand is the only elected statewide Democrat in Iowa.
