name	Iowa
fullname	State of Iowa
flag	Flag of Iowa.svg
flaglink	Flag
seal	Iowa-StateSeal.svg
map	Map of USA IA.svg
nickname	The Hawkeye State
former	Iowa Territory
number of representatives elected to u.s. congress	5
demonym	Iowan
motto	Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain.
capital	Des Moines
officiallang	English
largestcity	capital
largestmetro	Des Moines metropolitan area
governor	Terry E. Branstad (R)
lieutenant governor	Kim Reynolds (R)
legislature	General Assembly
upperhouse	Senate
lowerhouse	House of Representatives
senators	Chuck Grassley (R)Tom Harkin (D)
representative	3 Democrats, 2 Republicans
postalabbreviation	IA
arearank	26th
totalareaus	56,272
totalarea	145,743
landarea	144 700.8
waterareaus	402
waterarea	1,042
pcwater	0.71
poprank	30th
2000pop	(2010) 3,046,355
densityrank	35th
2000densityus	53.5
2000density	20.7
medianhouseholdincome	$48,075
incomerank	24th
admittanceorder	29th
admittancedate	December 28, 1846
timezone	Central: UTC-6/-5
latitude	40° 23′ N to 43° 30′ N
longitude	90° 8′ W to 96° 38′ W
lengthus	199
length	320
widthus	310
width	500
highestpoint	Hawkeye Point
highestelevus	1,670
highestelev	509
meanelevus	1,099
meanelev	335
lowestpoint	Mississippi River at Keokuk
lowestelevus	480
lowestelev	146
isocode	US-IA
website	www.iowa.gov }}

Iowa () is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New France. After the Louisiana Purchase, settlers laid the foundation for an agriculture-based economy in the heart of the Corn Belt. Iowa is often known as the "Food Capital of the World". However, Iowa's economy, culture, and landscape are diverse.

In the latter half of the 20th century, Iowa's agricultural economy transitioned to a diversified economy of advanced manufacturing, processing, financial services, biotechnology, and green energy production. The state has a population of just over 3 million (2010) and its capital and largest city is Des Moines. Iowa has been listed as one of the safest states in which to live.

Geography

Boundaries

thumb|250px|left|Topography of Iowa,with counties and major streams. Iowa is bordered by the Mississippi River on the east; the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River on the west; the northern boundary is a line along 43 degrees, 30 minutes north latitude. The southern border is the Des Moines River and a line along approximately 40 degrees 35 minutes north, as decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in Missouri v. Iowa after a standoff between Missouri and Iowa known as the Honey War.

Iowa has 99 counties, but 100 county seats because Lee County has two. The state capital, Des Moines, is located in Polk County.

Geology and terrain

Iowa's bedrock geology generally increases in age from west to east. In northwest Iowa Cretaceous bedrock can be 74 million years old, in eastern Iowa Cambrian bedrock dates to ca. 500 million years ago.

Iowa is generally not flat; most of the state consists of rolling hills. Prior divides Iowa into eight landforms based on glaciation, soils, topography, and river drainage. Loess hills lie along the western border of the state, some of which are several hundred feet thick. In the northeast, along the Mississippi River, is a section of the Driftless Zone, which in Iowa consists of steep hills and valleys which appear almost mountainous.

There are several natural lakes in the state, most notably Spirit Lake, West Okoboji Lake, and East Okoboji Lake in northwest Iowa (see Iowa Great Lakes). To the east lies Clear Lake. Man-made lakes include Lake Odessa, Saylorville Lake, Lake Red Rock, Coralville Lake, Lake MacBride, and Rathbun Lake. The northwest part of the state also contains a considerable number of remnants of the once common wetland areas such as Barringer Slough.

Ecology and environment

Iowa's natural vegetation is tallgrass prairie and savanna in upland areas, with dense forest and wetlands in floodplains and protected river valleys, and pothole wetlands in northern prairie areas. Most of Iowa is used for agriculture, crops cover 60% of the state, grasslands (mostly pasture and hay with some prairie and wetland) cover 30%, and forests cover 7%; urban areas and water cover another 1% each. The explosion in the number of high-density livestock facilities in Iowa has led to increased risk of rural water contamination and a perceived decline in air quality. Other factors negatively affecting Iowa's environment include the extensive use of older coal-fired power plants, fertilizer and pesticide runoff from crop production, and diminishment of the Jordan Aquifer.

There is a dearth of natural areas in Iowa; less than 1% of the tallgrass prairie that once covered most of Iowa remain intact, only about 5% of the state's prairie pothole wetlands remain, and most of the original forest has been lost. Iowa ranks 49th of U.S. states in public land holdings. Threatened or endangered animals in Iowa include the Bald Eagle, Interior Least Tern, Piping Plover, Indiana Bat, Pallid Sturgeon, the Iowa Pleistocene Land Snail, Higgins' Eye Pearly Mussel, and the Topeka Shiner. Endangered or threatened plants include Western Prairie Fringed Orchid, Eastern Prairie Fringed Orchid, Mead's Milkweed, Prairie Bush Clover, and Northern Wild Monkshood.

Climate

Iowa, like most of the Midwest, has a humid continental climate throughout the state (Koppen climate classification Dfa) with extremes of both heat and cold. The average annual temperature at Des Moines is ; for some locations in the north the figure is under , while Keokuk, on the Mississippi River, averages . Winters are often harsh and snowfall is common.

Spring ushers in the beginning of the severe weather season. Iowa averages about 50 days of thunderstorm activity per year. Tornadoes are common during the spring and summer months, with an average of 37 tornadoes in a single year. In 2008, twelve people were killed by tornadoes in Iowa, making it the deadliest year since 1968 and also the second most tornadoes in a year with 105, matching the total from 2001.

Iowa summers are known for heat and humidity, with daytime temperatures often near and sometimes exceeding . Average winters in the state have been known to drop well below freezing, even dropping below . Iowa's all time hottest temperature of was recorded at Keokuk on July 20, 1934; the all time lowest temperature of was recorded at Elkader on February 3, 1996.

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City

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Davenport

Des Moines

Dubuque

Sioux City

Waterloo

Iowa has a relatively smooth gradient of varying precipitation across the state, with areas in the southeast of the state receiving an average of over 38 inches of rain annually, and the northwest of the state receiving less than 28 inches. The pattern of precipitation across Iowa is seasonal, with more rain falling in the summer months. In Des Moines, roughly in the center of the state, over two-thirds of the 34.72 inches of rain fall from April through September, and about half of the average annual precipitation falls from May through August.

Prehistory

When American Indians first arrived in what is now Iowa more than 13,000 years ago, they were hunters and gatherers living in a Pleistocene glacial landscape. By the time European explorers visited Iowa, American Indians were largely settled farmers with complex economic, social, and political systems. This transformation happened gradually. During the Archaic period (10,500-2,800 years ago), American Indians adapted to local environments and ecosystems, slowly becoming more sedentary as populations increased.

More than 3,000 years ago, during the Late Archaic period, American Indians in Iowa began utilizing domesticated plants. The subsequent Woodland period saw an increased reliance on agriculture and social complexity, with increased use of mounds, ceramics, and specialized subsistence. During the Late Prehistoric period (beginning about AD 900) increased use of maize and social changes led to social flourishing and nucleated settlements.

The arrival of European trade goods and diseases in the Protohistoric period led to dramatic population shifts and economic and social upheaval, with the arrival of new tribes and early European explorers and traders. There were numerous Indian tribes living in Iowa at the time of early European exploration. Tribes which were probably descendants of the prehistoric Oneota include the Dakota, Ho-Chunk, Ioway, and Otoe. Tribes which arrived in Iowa in the late prehistoric or protohistoric periods include the Illiniwek, Meskwaki, Omaha, and Sauk.

History

Early exploration and trade, 1673-1808

The first known European explorers to document Iowa were Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet who traveled the Mississippi River in 1673 documenting several Indian villages on the Iowa side. The area of Iowa was claimed for France and remained a French territory until 1763. The French, prior to their impending defeat in the French and Indian War, transferred ownership to their ally, Spain. Spain practiced very loose control over the Iowa region, granting trading licenses to French and British traders, who established trading posts along the Mississippi and Des Moines Rivers.

Iowa was part of a territory known as La Louisiane or Louisiana, and European traders were interested in lead and furs obtained by Indians. The Sauk and Meskwaki effectively controlled trade on the Mississippi in the late 18th century and early 19th century. Among the early traders on the Mississippi were Julien Dubuque, Robert La Salle, and Paul Marin. Along the Missouri River at least five French and English trading houses were built prior to 1808. In 1800, Napoleon Bonaparte took control of Louisiana from Spain in a treaty.

After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, Iowa was placed under United States control. Much of Iowa was mapped by Zebulon Pike in 1805, but it was not until the construction of Fort Madison in 1808 that the U.S. established tenuous military control over the region.

War of 1812 and unstable U.S. control

Fort Madison was built to control trade and establish U.S. dominance over the Upper Mississippi, but it was poorly designed and disliked by the Sauk and Ho-Chunk, many of whom allied with the British, who had not abandoned claims to the territory. Fort Madison was defeated by British-supported Indians in 1813 during the War of 1812, and Fort Shelby in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, also fell to the British. Black Hawk took part in the siege of Fort Madison.

After the war, the U.S. reestablished control of the region through the construction of Fort Armstrong, Fort Snelling in Minnesota, and Fort Atkinson in Nebraska.

Trade and Indian removal, 1814-1832

The U.S. encouraged settlement of the east side of the Mississippi and removal of Indians to the west. Trade continued in furs and lead, but disease and forced population movement decimated Indian cultures and economies. A disputed 1804 treaty between Quashquame and William Henry Harrison that surrendered much of Illinois to the U.S. enraged many Sauk and led to the 1832 Black Hawk War. As punishment for the uprising, and as part of a larger settlement strategy, treaties were subsequently designed to remove all Indians from Iowa.

The Sauk and Meskwaki were pushed out of the Mississippi valley in 1832, out of the Iowa River valley in 1843, and out of Iowa altogether in 1846. Many Meskwaki later returned to Iowa and settled near Tama, Iowa; the Meskwaki Settlement remains to this day. In 1856 the Iowa Legislature passed an unprecedented act allowing the Meskawki to purchase the land; Indians were not usually permitted to do so. The Ho-Chunk were removed from Iowa in 1850, and the Dakota were removed by the late 1850s. Western Iowa around modern Council Bluffs was used as a way station for other tribes being moved west, including the Potawatomi.

U.S. settlement and statehood, 1832-1860

The first American settlers officially moved to Iowa in June 1833. Primarily, they were families from Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Kentucky, and Virginia. On July 4, 1838, the U.S. Congress established the Territory of Iowa. President Martin Van Buren appointed Robert Lucas governor of the territory, which at the time had 22 counties and a population of 23,242.

Almost immediately after achieving territorial status, a clamor arose for statehood. On December 28, 1846, Iowa became the 29^th state in the Union when President James K. Polk signed Iowa's admission bill into law. Once admitted to the Union, the state's boundary issues resolved, and most of its land purchased from the Indians, Iowa set its direction to development and organized campaigns for settlers and investors, boasting the young frontier state's rich farmlands, fine citizens, free and open society, and good government.

Iowa has a long tradition of state and county fairs. The first and second Iowa State Fairs were held in the more developed eastern part of the state at Fairfield. The first fair was held October 25–27, 1854, at a cost of around $323. Thereafter, the fair moved to locations closer to the center of the state and in 1886 found a permanent home in Des Moines. The State Fair has been held every year since except for the year 1898 due to the Spanish-American War and the World's Fair being held in nearby Omaha, Nebraska. The fair was also a World War II wartime casualty from 1942-1945.

Civil War, 1861-1865

Iowa supported the Union during the Civil War, voting heavily for Abraham Lincoln, though there was a strong antiwar "Copperhead" movement among settlers of southern origins and among Catholics. There were no battles in the state, but Iowa sent large supplies of food to the armies and the eastern cities. Much of Iowa's support for the Union can be attributed to Samuel J. Kirkwood, its wartime governor. Of a total population of 675,000, about 116,000 men were subjected to military duty. Iowa contributed proportionately more men to Civil War military service than did any other state, north or south, sending more than 75,000 volunteers to the armed forces, over one-sixth of whom were in their graves before Appomattox.

Most fought in the great campaigns in the Mississippi Valley and in the South. Iowa troops fought at Wilson's Creek in Missouri, Pea Ridge in Arkansas, Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, Chattanooga, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, and Rossville Gap as well as Vicksburg, Iuka, and Corinth. They served with the Army of the Potomoc in Virginia and fought under Union General Philip Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley. Many died and were buried at Andersonville. They marched on General Nathaniel Banks' ill-starred expedition to the Red River. Twenty-seven Iowans have been awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government, which was first awarded in the Civil War.

Iowa had several brigadier generals and four major generals—Grenville Mellen Dodge, Samuel R. Curtis, Francis J. Herron, and Frederick Steele—and saw many of its generals go on to state and national prominence following the war.

Agricultural expansion, 1865-1930

Following the Civil War, Iowa's population continued to grow dramatically, from 674,913 people in 1860 to 1,194,020 in 1870. The introduction of railroads in the 1850s and 1860s transformed Iowa into a major agricultural producer.

In 1917, the United States entered World War I and farmers as well as all Iowans experienced a wartime economy. For farmers, the change was significant. Since the beginning of the war in 1914, Iowa farmers had experienced economic prosperity. In the economic sector, Iowa also has undergone considerable change. Beginning with the first farm-related industries developed in the 1870s, Iowa has experienced a gradual increase in the number of business and manufacturing operations.

Depression, World War II, and the rise of manufacturing, 1930-1985

The transition from an agricultural economy to a mixed economy happened slowly. The Great Depression and World War II accelerated the shift away from smallholder farming to larger farms, and began a trend of urbanization that continues. The period since World War II has witnessed a particular increase in manufacturing operations. While agriculture continued to be the state's dominant industry, Iowans also produce a wide variety of products including refrigerators, washing machines, fountain pens, farm implements, and food products.

The Farm Crisis of the 1980s caused a major recession in Iowa, causing poverty not seen since the Depression. The crisis spurred a major population decline in Iowa that lasted a decade.

Reemergence as a mixed economy, 1985-present

After bottoming out in the 1980s, Iowa's economy began to become increasingly less dependent on agriculture, and now has a mix of manufacturing, biotechnology, finance and insurance services, and government services. The population of Iowa has increased at a faster rate than the U.S. as a whole, and Iowa now has a predominantly urban population.

Demographics

Major Cities

{|class="wikitable sortable" |+ Iowa's largest cities and their surrounding areas. |+Recorded by the United States Census Bureau ! scope="col" style="width: 3em;" |CityRank ! scope="col" class="unsortable" style="width: 10em;" |City ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;" |2000 CityPopulation ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;" |2010 CityPopulation ! scope="col" style="width: 5.5em;" |2010 MetroPopulation |- |align="right"|1   | style="background:#e0ffff;"|Des Moines |align="right"|198,682   |align="right"|203,433   |align="right"|569,633   |- |align="right"|2   | style="background:#add8e6;"|Cedar Rapids |align="right"|120,758   |align="right"|126,326   |align="right"|257,940   |- |align="right"|3   | style="background:#fec3f7;"|Davenport |align="right"|98,359   |align="right"|99,685   |align="right"|379,690   |- |align="right"|4   | style="background:#d49cdb;"|Sioux City |align="right"|85,013   |align="right"|82,684   |align="right"|143,577   |- |align="right"|5   | style="background:#bc8f8f;"|Waterloo |align="right"|68,747   |align="right"|68,406   |align="right"|167,819   |- |align="right"|6   | style="background:#ffdead;"|Iowa City |align="right"|62,220   |align="right"|67,862   |align="right"|152,586   |- |align="right"|7   | style="background:#fef173;"|Council Bluffs |align="right"|58,268   |align="right"|62,230   |align="right"|865,350   |- |align="right"|8   | style="background:#fb91a2;"|Ames |align="right"|50,731   |align="right"|58,965   |align="right"|89,542   |- |align="right"|9   | style="background:#98fb98;"|Dubuque |align="right"|57,686   |align="right"|57,637   |align="right"|93,653   |- |align="right"|10   | style="background:#e0ffff;"|West Des Moines |align="right"|46,403   |align="right"|56,609   |align="right"|569,633   |- |align="right"|11   | style="background:#e0ffff;"|Ankeny |align="right"|27,117   |align="right"|45,582   |align="right"|569,633   |- |align="right"|12   | style="background:#e0ffff;"|Urbandale |align="right"|29,072   |align="right"|39,463   |align="right"|569,633   |- |align="right"|13   | style="background:#bc8f8f;"|Cedar Falls |align="right"|36,145   |align="right"|39,260   |align="right"|167,819   |- |align="right"|14   | style="background:#add8e6;"|Marion |align="right"|26,294   |align="right"|34,768   |align="right"|257,940   |- |align="right"|15   | style="background:#fec3f7;"|Bettendorf |align="right"|31,275   |align="right"|33,217   |align="right"|379,690   |}

Population

As of 2008, Iowa has an estimated population of 3,002,555, which is an increase of about 19,000 people or 0.6%, from the prior year and an increase of 76,000 or 2.6%, since the year 2000. This is the first time the state has topped the three million mark in population. Iowa is the 30th most populated state in the country. In 2007, the latest demographic information available shows that the state had a natural increase of 53,706 people in population from the last census (that is 197,163 births minus 143,457 deaths) and a decrease of 11,754 due to net migration of people out of the state.

Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 29,386 people, while migration within the country produced a net loss of 41,140 people. 6.1% of Iowa's population were reported as under the age of five, 22.6% under 18, and 14.7% were 65 or older. Males made up approximately 49.2% of the population. The population density of the state is 52.7 people per square mile. The center of population of Iowa is located in Marshall County, in the city of Marshalltown.

Race and ancestry

Iowa's population included about 97,000 foreign-born (3.3%). Iowans are mostly of Western European descent. The five largest ancestry groups in Iowa are: German (35.7%), Irish (13.5%), English (9.5%), American (6.6%), and Norwegian (5.7%).

The racial make up of the state is 91.0% White (non-Hispanic), 3.8% Hispanic, 2.5% Black or African American, 1.6% Asian, and 0.4% American Indian. One percent of respondents report two or more races.

Rural to urban population shift; brain drain

Iowa's population is more urban than rural, with 61 percent living in urban areas in 2000, a trend that began in the early 20th century. Urban counties in Iowa grew 8.5% from 2000 to 2008, while rural counties declined by 4.2%. The shift from rural to urban has caused population increases in more urbanized counties such as Dallas, Johnson, Linn, and Polk, at the expense of more rural counties.

Iowa, in common with other Midwestern states (especially Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota), is feeling the brunt of rural flight, although Iowa has been gaining population since approximately 1990. Some smaller communities, such as Denison and Storm Lake, have mitigated this population loss through gains in immigrant laborers.

Another demographic problem for Iowa is the brain drain, in which educated young adults leave the state in search of better prospects in higher education or employment. During the 1990s, Iowa had the second highest exodus rate for single, educated young adults, second only to North Dakota. Significant loss of educated young people contributes to economic stagnation and the loss of services for remaining citizens.

Religion

A 2001 survey from the City University of New York found that 52% of Iowans are Protestant, while 23% are Roman Catholic, and other religions made up 6%. 13% responded with non-religious, and 5% did not answer. The largest Protestant denominations by number of adherents are the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America with 268,543; and the United Methodist Church with 248,211.

The study Religious Congregations & Membership: 2000 found that in the southernmost two tiers of Iowa counties and in other counties in the center of the state, the largest religious group was the United Methodist Church; in the northeast part of the state, including Dubuque and Linn counties (where Cedar Rapids is located), the Roman Catholic Church was the largest; and in ten counties, including three in the northern tier, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was the largest. The study also found rapid growth in Evangelical Christian denominations. Dubuque is home to a Roman Catholic archdiocese, which spans the northeastern section of Iowa.

Historically, religious sects and orders who desired to live apart from the rest of society established themselves in Iowa, such as the Amish and Mennonite near Kalona and in other parts of eastern Iowa such as Davis County and Buchanan County. Other religious sects and orders living apart include Quakers around West Branch and Le Grand, German Pietists who founded the Amana Colonies, followers of Transcendental Meditation who founded Maharishi Vedic City, and Cistercian monks and nuns at the New Melleray and Our Lady of the Mississippi Abbies near Dubuque.

Language

English is the most common language used in Iowa, used by 94% of the population. William Labov and colleagues, in the monumental Atlas of North American English found that the English spoken in Iowa divides into two large linguistic regions. Natives of northern Iowa — including Sioux City, Fort Dodge, and the Waterloo region — tend to speak the dialect that linguists call North Central American English, which is also found in North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Natives of central and southern Iowa — including such cities as Council Bluffs, Des Moines, and Iowa City — tend to speak the North Midland dialect also found in Nebraska, central Illinois, and central Indiana.

After English, Spanish is the second-most-common language spoken in Iowa, with 120,000 people in Iowa of Hispanic or Latino origin and 47,000 people born in Latin America. The third-most-common language is German, spoken by 17,000 people in Iowa; two notable German dialects used in Iowa include Amana German spoken around the Amana Colonies, and Pennsylvania German, spoken among the Amish in Iowa. No other language is spoken by more than 0.5 percent of the Iowa population. The only indigenous language used regularly in Iowa is Meskwaki, used around the Meskwaki Settlement.

Attractions

Central Iowa

Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa and the state's political and economic center. It is home to the Iowa State Capitol, the State Historical Society of Iowa Museum, Drake University, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines Botanical Center, Principal Riverwalk, the Iowa State Fair, Terrace Hill, and the World Food Prize. Nearby attractions include Adventureland in Altoona , Living History Farms in Urbandale, and the Iowa Speedway in Newton.

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The Christina Reiman Butterfly Wing at Iowa State University, [[Ames, Iowa|Ames.]]Ames is the home of Iowa State University, the Iowa State Center, and Reiman Gardens.

Boone hosts the biennial Farm Progress Show and is home to the Mamie Doud Eisenhower museum, the Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad, and Ledges State Park. The Meskwaki Settlement west of Tama is the only American Indian settlement in Iowa and is host to a large annual Pow-wow.

The Clint Eastwood movie The Bridges of Madison County, based on the popular novel of the same name, took place and was filmed in Madison County. Also in Madison County is the John Wayne Birthplace Museum in Winterset.

Other communities with vibrant historic downtown areas include Indianola, Pella, Knoxville, Marshalltown, Perry, and Story City.

Eastern Iowa

Iowa City is home to the University of Iowa, the Iowa Writers' Workshop, and the Old Capitol building. Iowa City is the first U.S. "City of Literature" in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.

The Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum are located in West Branch.

The Amana Colonies are a group of settlements of German Pietists comprising seven villages listed as National Historic Landmarks.

The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art has collections of paintings by Grant Wood and Marvin Cone. Cedar Rapids is also home to the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library and the Brucemore mansion.

Davenport boasts the Figge Art Museum, River Music Experience, Putnam Museum and IMAX Theater, Davenport Skybridge, Quad City Symphony Orchestra, Ballet Quad Cities, and plays host to the annual Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival.

Other communities with vibrant historic downtown areas include West Liberty, Fairfield, Burlington, Mount Pleasant, Fort Madison, LeClaire, Mount Vernon, Ottumwa, Washington, and Wilton.

Western Iowa

Some of the most dramatic scenery in Iowa is found in the unique Loess Hills. The Iowa Great Lakes include several resort areas such as Spirit Lake, Arnolds Park, and the Okoboji Lakes. The Sanford Museum and Planetarium in Cherokee, Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend, Danish Immigrant Museum in Elk Horn, and the Fort Museum and Frontier Village in Fort Dodge are regional destinations.

Sioux City boasts a revitalized downtown, attractions include the Sergeant Floyd Monument, Sergeant Floyd River Museum, and the Orpheum Theater.

Council Bluffs, the major city of southwest Iowa, sits at the base of the Loess Hills National Scenic Byway. With three casino resorts, the city also includes such cultural attractions as the Western Hills Trails Center, Union Pacific Railroad Museum, the Grenville M. Dodge House, and the Lewis and Clark Monument.

Northwest Iowa is home to some of the largest concentrations of wind turbine farms in the world. Other western communities with vibrant historic downtown areas include Storm Lake, Spencer, Le Mars, Glenwood, Carroll, Atlantic, Red Oak, Denison, Creston, Mount Ayr, Sac City, and Walnut.

Northeast and Northern Iowa

The Driftless Area of northeast Iowa has many steep hills and deep valleys, checkered with forest and terraced fields. Effigy Mounds National Monument in Allamakee and Clayton Counties has the largest assemblage of animal-shaped prehistoric mounds in the world.

Waterloo is home of the Grout Museum and is headquarters of the Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area. Cedar Falls is home of the University of Northern Iowa.

Dubuque is a regional tourist destination with attractions such as the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium and the Port of Dubuque.

Dyersville is home to the famed Field of Dreams baseball diamond. Maquoketa Caves State Park, near Maquoketa, contains more caves than any other state park.

Fort Atkinson State Preserve in Fort Atkinson has the remains of an original 1840s Dragoon fortification.

Other communities with vibrant historic downtown areas include Decorah, McGregor, Mason City, Elkader, Guttenberg, Algona, Spillville, Charles City, and Independence.

Statewide

RAGBRAI — the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa — attracts thousands of bicyclists and support personnel. It has crossed the state on various routes each year since 1973. Iowa is home to more than 70 wineries, and hosts five regional wine tasting trails. Many Iowa communities hold farmers' markets during warmer months, these are typically weekly events, but larger cities can host multiple markets.

Economy

CNBC's list of "Top States for Business in 2010" has recognized Iowa as the sixth best state in the nation in the overall score. In the 10 individual categories, Iowa's best ranking was being 1st when it came to the "Cost of Doing Business", this includes all taxes, utility costs, and other costs associated with doing business. 10th in the "Economy" rankings, 12th in "Business Friendliness", 16th in "Education", 17th in both "Cost of Living" and "Quality of Life", 20th in "Workforce", 29th in "Technology and Innovation", 32nd in "Transportation" and the lowest ranking was 36th in "Access to Capital" While Iowa is often viewed as a farming state, in reality agriculture is a small portion of a diversified economy, with manufacturing, biotechnology, finance and insurance services, and government services contributing substantially to Iowa's economy. This economic diversity has helped Iowa weather the late 2000s recession better than most states, with unemployment substantially lower than the rest of the nation.

If the economy is measured by gross domestic product, in 2005 Iowa's GDP was about US $124 billion. If measured by gross state product, for 2005 it was US $113.5 billion. Its per capita income for 2006 was US $23,340.

On July 2, 2009, Standard and Poor's rated the state of Iowa's credit as AAA (the highest of its credit ratings, held by only 11 U.S. state governments).

As of January 2010, the states unemployment rate is 6.6%.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing is the largest sector of Iowa's economy, with $20.8 billion (21%) of Iowa's 2003 gross state product. Major manufacturing sectors include food processing, heavy machinery, and agricultural chemicals. Sixteen percent of Iowa's workforce is dedicated to manufacturing. Food processing is the largest component of manufacturing. Its industrial outputs include food processing, machinery, electric equipment, chemical products, publishing, and primary metals. Companies with direct or indirect processing facilities in Iowa include ConAgra Foods, Wells Blue Bunny, Barilla, Heinz, Wonder Bread/Hostess Snack Cakes, Tone's Spices, General Mills, and Quaker Oats. Major non-food advanced manufacturing firms with production facilities in Iowa include 3M, ALCOA, Amana Corporation, Dexter Apache Holdings, Inc., Electrolux/Frigidaire, Emerson Process, Fisher Controls International, HON Industries, The HON Company, IPSCO Steel, John Deere, Lennox Manufacturing, Maytag Corporation, Pella Corporation, Rockwell Collins, Vermeer Company, and Winnebago Industries.

Agriculture

Directly and indirectly, agriculture has always been a major component of Iowa's economy. However, the direct production and sale of raw agricultural products contributes only about 3.5% of Iowa's gross state product. The indirect role of agriculture in Iowa's economy can be measured in multiple ways, but its total impact, including agriculture-affiliated business, has been measured at 16.4% in terms of value added and 24.3% in terms of total output. This is lower than the economic impact in Iowa of non-farm manufacturing, which accounts for 22.4% of total value added and 26.5% of total output. Iowa's main agricultural outputs are hogs, corn, soybeans, oats, cattle, eggs, and dairy products. Iowa is the nation's largest producer of ethanol and corn and some years is the largest grower of soybeans as well. In 2008, the 92,600 farms in Iowa produced 19% of the nation's corn, 17% of the soybeans, 30% of the hogs, and 14% of the eggs. thumb|right|Mural in [[Mount Ayr, Iowa|Mt. Ayr Post Office, "The Corn Parade" by Orr C. Fischer, commissioned as part of the New Deal.]]

Major Iowa agricultural product processors include Archer Daniels Midland, Ajinomoto, Cargill, Inc., Diamond V Mills, Garst Seed Company, Heartland Pork Enterprises, Hy-Vee, Monsanto Company, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, and Quaker Oats.

Other sectors

Iowa also has a strong financial and insurance sector, with approximately 6,100 firms, including AEGON, Nationwide Group, Aviva USA, Farm Bureau Financial Services, ING, Marsh Affinity Group, MetLife, Principal Financial Group, Principal Capital Management, Wellmark Blue Cross & Blue Shield (which, according to the American Medical Association, provided 71% of the state's health insurance in 2007), Wells Fargo, and Wells Fargo Financial Services. Biotechnology has expanded dramatically in Iowa in the past decade, with firms including Bio-Research Products Inc., Boehringer Ingelheim, Vetmedica, Diosynth, Inc., Fort Dodge Animal Health, Penford Products Co., Integrated DNA Technologies., Roche Applied Science, Wacker Biochem Corp., and Wyeth.

Ethanol production consumes approximately one-third of Iowa's corn production, and renewable fuels account for 8% of the state's gross domestic product. A total of 39 ethanol plants produced 3.1 billion gallons of fuel in 2009. In addition to ethanol, renewable energy has become a major economic force in western Iowa, with wind turbine electrical generation increasing exponentally since 1990. As of 2008, wind accounted for 15% of energy produced and 7.1% of the state's power needs; Iowa ranked second in wind generating capacity of U.S. states behind Texas. Major producers of turbines and components in Iowa include Acciona Energy of West Branch, TPI Composites of Newton, and Siemens Energy of Fort Madison.

Iowa is the headquarters for five of the top 1,000 companies for revenue. They include Principal Financial, Rockwell Collins, Casey's General Stores, HNI, and Terra Industries. Iowa is also headquarters to other companies including Hy-Vee, Pella Corporation, Vermeer Company, Kum & Go gas stations, Von Maur, Pioneer Hi-Bred, McLeodUSA, and Fareway grocery stores.

Taxation

Iowa imposes taxes on net state income of individuals, estates, and trusts. There are currently nine income tax brackets, ranging from 0.36% to 8.98%. The state sales tax rate is 6%, with non-prepared food having no tax. Iowa has one local option sales tax that may be imposed by counties after an election. Property tax is levied on the taxable value of real property. Iowa has more than 2,000 taxing authorities. Most property is taxed by more than one taxing authority. The tax rate differs in each locality and is a composite of county, city or rural township, school district and special levies. Iowa allows its residents to deduct their federal income taxes from their state income taxes.

Transportation

The 2011 American State Litter Scorecard ranked Iowa amongst the top four "Best" states, for overall effectiveness and quality of its statewide public space cleanliness, from state and related roadway (and adjacent property) litter/debris removal efforts—the only one in the Midwestern United States to attain that honor, that year.

Interstate highways

Iowa has four primary interstate highways. Interstate 29 runs along the western edge of the state through Council Bluffs and Sioux City. Interstate 35 goes from the southern border to the northern border through the center of the state, including Des Moines. Interstate 74 begins at Interstate 80 just north and east of Davenport. Interstate 80 goes from the west end of the state to the east end through Council Bluffs, Des Moines, Iowa City, and the Quad Cities. Interstate 380 is an auxiliary Interstate Highway, which runs from Interstate 80 near Iowa City through Cedar Rapids ending in Waterloo and is part of the Avenue of the Saints highway.

Airports with scheduled flights

Iowa is served by several major airports including the Des Moines International Airport, the Eastern Iowa Airport, in Cedar Rapids, Quad City International Airport, which is located in Moline, Illinois, and Eppley Airfield, located in Omaha, Nebraska. Smaller airports in the state include the Davenport Municipal Airport (Iowa), Dubuque Regional Airport, Fort Dodge Regional Airport, Mason City Municipal Airport, Sioux Gateway Airport, Southeast Iowa Regional Airport, and Waterloo Regional Airport.

Railroads

Amtrak's California Zephyr serves the south of Iowa with stops at Burlington, Mount Pleasant, Ottumwa, Osceola, and Creston on its daily route between Chicago and Emeryville, California (across the bay from San Francisco). Fort Madison is served by Amtrak's Southwest Chief, running daily between Chicago and Los Angeles.

Law and government

:See List of Governors of Iowa, Iowa General Assembly, and Iowa State Capitol The current Governor is Terry E. Branstad (R)

Other statewide elected officials are:

Kim Reynolds (R) - Lieutenant Governor

Matt Schultz (R) - Secretary of State

David Vaudt (R) - Auditor of State

Michael Fitzgerald (D) - Treasurer of State

Bill Northey (R) - Secretary of Agriculture

Tom Miller (D) - Attorney General

The two U.S. Senators:

Tom Harkin (D)

Chuck Grassley (R)

The five U.S. Congressmen:

Bruce Braley (D) - First District

Dave Loebsack (D) - Second District

Leonard Boswell (D) - Third District

Tom Latham (R) - Fourth District

Steve King (R) - Fifth District

The Code of Iowa contains the statutory laws of the state of Iowa. It is periodically updated by the Iowa Legislative Service Bureau, with a new edition published in odd-numbered years and a supplement published in even-numbered years.

Iowa is an alcohol monopoly or Alcoholic beverage control state.

Political parties

In Iowa, the term "political party" refers to political organizations which have received two percent or more of the votes cast for president or governor in the "last preceding general election". Iowa recognizes two political parties - the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. Third parties, officially termed "nonparty political organizations" can appear on the ballot as well - five of these have had candidates on the ballot in Iowa since 2004 for various positions: the Constitution Party, the Iowa Green Party, the Libertarian Party, the United States Pirate Party, and the Socialist Workers Party.

Voter trends

+ Presidential elections results
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For many years, Iowa was strongly Republican. From statehood until 1969, it elected only three Democrats to the U. S. Senate. Since the 1980s, however, it has become more of a swing state in national politics. The state currently leans slightly Democratic, according to the Cook Partisan Voting Index, which by analyzing recent elections gives Iowa a score of D+1. However, the state is far from homogeneous in its political leanings. Generally, eastern Iowa is strongly Democratic while western Iowa is strongly Republican. Central Iowa is more split, though Des Moines tends Democratic. Cook finds that Iowa's five political districts range in political orientation. Iowa's 2nd congressional district, in the Eastern/Southeastern part of the state, leans distinctly Democratic, with a D+7 (strong Democratic) score; but Iowa's 5th congressional district, which covers most of Western Iowa, leans strongly Republican, scoring R+9.

From 1968 to 1984, Iowa voted for the Republican candidate in the presidential election, and from 1988 to 2000 the state voted for the Democrat; in the latter election, the Democratic candidate won by little more than 4,000 votes. In the 2004 election, Iowa went by about 10,000 votes for George W. Bush but in 2008, Barack Obama won by a much larger margin of about 150,000 votes.

In the 2006 elections, the Iowa Democrats gained two seats in the Iowa delegation to the United States House of Representatives, and Democrats won a majority in both houses of the Iowa General Assembly.

Presidential caucus

The state gets considerable attention every four years because it holds the first presidential caucuses, gatherings of voters to select delegates to the state conventions. Along with the New Hampshire primary the following week, Iowa's caucuses have become the starting points for choosing the two major-party candidates for president. The caucuses, held in January of the election year, involve people gathering in homes or public places and choosing their candidates, rather than casting secret ballots as is done in a primary election. The national and international media give Iowa (and New Hampshire) much of the attention accorded the national candidate selection process, which gives Iowa voters enormous leverage. Those who enter the caucus race often expend enormous effort to reach voters in each of Iowa's 99 counties.

Civil rights

thumb||The [[Union Block (Mount Pleasant, Iowa)|Union Block building, Mount Pleasant, scene of early civil rights and women's rights activities. Listed as one of the most endangered historic sites in Iowa, it is to be rehabilitated. ]] In the 19th century Iowa was among the earliest states to enact prohibitions against race discrimination, especially in education, but was slow to achieve full integration in the 20th century. In the very first decision of the Iowa Supreme Court — In Re the Matter of Ralph, decided July 1839 — the Court rejected slavery in a decision that found that a slave named Ralph became free when he stepped on Iowa soil, 26 years before the end of the Civil War. The state did away with racial barriers to marriage in 1851, more than 100 years before the U.S. Supreme Court would ban miscegenation statutes nationwide.

The Iowa Supreme Court decided Clark v. The Board of Directors in 1868, ruling that racially segregated "separate but equal" schools had no place in Iowa, 85 years before Brown v. Board of Education. By 1875 a number of additional court rulings effectively ended segregation in Iowa schools. Social and housing discrimination continued against Blacks at state universities until the 1950s. The Court heard Coger v. The North Western Union Packet Co. in 1873, ruling against racial discrimination in public accommodations 91 years before the U.S. Supreme Court reached the same decision.

In 1884, the Iowa Civil Rights Act apparently outlawed discrimination by businesses, reading: "All persons within this state shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, restaurants, chophouses, eating houses, lunch counters, and all other places where refreshments are served, public conveyances, barber shops, bathhouses, theaters, and all other places of amusement." However, the courts chose to narrowly apply this act, allowing de-facto discrimination to continue. Racial discrimination at public businesses was not deemed illegal until 1949, when the court ruled in State of Iowa v. Katz that businesses had to serve customers regardless of race; the case began when Edna Griffin was denied service at a Des Moines drugstore. Full racial civil rights were codified under the Iowa Civil Rights Act of 1965.

As with racial equality, Iowa was a vanguard in women's rights in the mid-19th century, but was slow to give women the right to vote. In 1847, the University of Iowa became the first public university in the U.S. to admit men and women on an equal basis. In 1869, Iowa became the first state in the union to admit women to the practice of law, with the Court ruling that women may not be denied the right to practice law in Iowa and admitting Arabella A. Mansfield to the practice of law. Several attempts to grant full voting rights to Iowa women were defeated between 1870 and 1919. In 1894 women were given "partial suffrage", which allowed them to vote on issues, but not for candidates. It was not until the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1920 that women had full suffrage in Iowa. Although Iowa supported the Federal Equal Rights Amendment, in 1980 and 1992 Iowa voters rejected an Equal Rights Amendment to the state constitution.

Post-Civil Rights era court decisions in Iowa clarified and expanded citizens' rights. The landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) confirmed the right of students to express political views. On April 3, 2009, the Iowa Supreme Court decided Varnum v. Brien, holding in a unanimous decision, that the state's law forbidding same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. This makes Iowa the third state in the U.S. and first in the Midwest to permit same-sex marriage.

Sister states

Iowa has seven official partner states:

Hebei Province, People's Republic of China (1983)

Stavropol Krai, Russia (1989)

Taiwan, Republic of China (1989)

Terengganu, Malaysia (1987)

Veneto Region, Italy (1997)

Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan (1960)

Yucatán, Mexico (1964)

Cherkasy Oblast, Ukraine (1996)

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Iowa is often credited with the start of the high school movement in the U.S. Around 1910, secondary schools as we know them today were established across the state, which was unprecedented at the time. As the high school movement gathered pace and went beyond Iowa, there was clear evidence of how more time spent in school lead to greater income.

The four-year graduation rate for high schoolers was 87.2 % in 2009. The state has the third highest graduation rate in the nation. Iowa continually ranks in the top 3 for ACT and SAT scores. In 2009, Iowa ranked top in the nation for average SAT scores per student and second in the nation for average ACT scores per student. Iowa has 365 school districts, and has the twelfth best student to teacher ratio of 13.8 students per teacher. Teacher's pay, however, is ranked forty-second with the average salary being $39,284.

The Iowa State Board of Education works with the Iowa Department of Education to provide oversight, supervision, and support for the state's education system that includes all public elementary and secondary schools, nonpublic schools that receive state accreditation, area education agencies, community colleges, and teacher preparation programs. The State Board consists of ten members: nine voting members who are appointed by the governor for six-year terms and subject to Senate confirmation; and one nonvoting student member who serves a one-year term, also appointed by the governor.

Colleges and universities

The Iowa Board of Regents is composed of nine citizen volunteers appointed by the governor to provide policymaking, coordination, and oversight of the state's public universities, two special K-12 schools, and affiliated centers.

Iowa's three public universities include:

Iowa State University, Ames

University of Iowa, Iowa City

University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls

The special K-12 schools include the Iowa School for the Deaf in Council Bluffs and the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School in Vinton. Both Iowa State University and the University of Iowa are major research institutions and members of the prestigious Association of American Universities. In addition to the three state universities, Iowa has multiple private colleges and universities.

Private colleges and universities include:

Buena Vista University, Storm Lake

Clarke University, Dubuque

Des Moines University, Des Moines

Divine Word College, Epworth

Drake University, Des Moines

Emmaus Bible College, Dubuque

Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary, Ankeny

Graceland University, Lamoni

Iowa Wesleyan College, Mount Pleasant

Kaplan University, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Mason City, and Urbandale

Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield

Mount Mercy University, Cedar Rapids

Palmer College of Chiropractic, Davenport

Saint Ambrose University, Davenport

University of Dubuque, Dubuque

Upper Iowa University, Fayette

Waldorf College, Forest City

William Penn University, Oskaloosa

Private liberal arts colleges include:

Ashford University, Clinton

Briar Cliff University, Sioux City

Central College, Pella

Coe College, Cedar Rapids

Cornell College, Mount Vernon

Dordt College, Sioux Center

Grand View University, Des Moines

Grinnell College, Grinnell

Loras College, Dubuque

Luther College, Decorah

Morningside College, Sioux City

Northwestern College, Orange City

Simpson College, Indianola

Wartburg College, Waverly

Sports

Iowa has professional sports teams in baseball, basketball, hockey, football and soccer. The state has four major college teams playing in Division I for all sports. In football, Iowa State University and the University of Iowa compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), whereas the University of Northern Iowa and Drake University compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

Baseball

Iowa has four Class A minor league teams in the Midwest League. They are the Burlington Bees, Cedar Rapids Kernels, Clinton LumberKings, and the Quad Cities River Bandits. The Sioux City Explorers are part of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. The Waterloo Bucks play in the Northwoods League. Des Moines is home to the Iowa Cubs, a Class AAA team in the Pacific Coast League.

Football

The Sioux City Bandits are an Indoor football team in the United Indoor Football League. The Iowa Barnstormers play in the Arena Football League. They play their home games at Wells Fargo Arena.

Hockey

The Quad City Mallards games are played in Moline, Illinois are part of the Central Hockey League.

The United States Hockey League has five teams in Iowa: the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, Sioux City Musketeers, Waterloo Black Hawks, Des Moines Buccaneers, and the Dubuque Fighting Saints The Omaha Lancers previously played in Council Bluffs from 2002 to 2009, but have since moved back to Omaha, Nebraska. The North Iowa Outlaws play in the North American Hockey League in Mason City. The Quad City Jr Flames are a Tier III Jr. A hockey team located in Davenport, Iowa and are part of the Central States Hockey League.

Basketball

Iowa has two professional basketball teams. The Iowa Energy, an NBA Development League team that plays in Des Moines, is affiliated with the Chicago Bulls and Phoenix Suns of the NBA. The Quad Cities Riverhawks of the Premier Basketball League are based in Davenport but play at Wharton Field House in Moline, Illinois.

Soccer

The Des Moines Menace play their home games at Valley Stadium in West Des Moines.

College

The state has four NCAA Division I college teams—in NCAA FBS, the Iowa State University Cyclones of the Big 12 Conference and the University of Iowa Hawkeyes of the Big Ten Conference; in NCAA FCS, the University of Northern Iowa Panthers of the Missouri Valley Conference and Missouri Valley Football Conference (despite the similar names, the conferences are administratively separate) and the Drake University Bulldogs of the Missouri Valley Conference in most sports and Pioneer League for football.

Notable Iowans

Iowa has been the birthplace of U.S. President Herbert Hoover, Vice President Henry A. Wallace, and two first ladies, Lou Henry Hoover and Mamie Eisenhower. Other national leaders who lived in Iowa include President Ronald Reagan, John L. Lewis, Harry Hopkins, Carrie Chapman Catt, Jefferson Davis, Chief Black Hawk, and John Brown.

Five Nobel Prize winners hail from Iowa: Norman Borlaug, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize; Thomas Cech, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry; Alan J. Heeger, also a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry; John Mott, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize; and Stanley B. Prusiner, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Other notable scientists who worked or were born in Iowa include astronomer and space pioneer James A. Van Allen, ecologist Aldo Leopold, computer pioneer John Vincent Atanasoff, inventor and plant scientist George Washington Carver, geochemist Clair Cameron Patterson, and Intel founder Robert Noyce.

Notable writers, artists, and news personalities from Iowa include Bill Bryson, George Gallup, Susan Glaspell, Harry Reasoner, Phil Stong, and Grant Wood.

Entertainers from Iowa include Tom Arnold, Bix Beiderbecke, Johnny Carson, Buffalo Bill Cody, Simon Estes, William Frawley, Ashton Kutcher, Cloris Leachman, Glenn Miller, Donna Reed, Brandon Routh, John Wayne, Andy Williams, Meredith Willson, and Elijah Wood.

Famous Iowa athletes include Cap Anson, Jay Berwanger, Dallas Clark, Fred Clarke, Aubrey Devine, Bob Feller, Dan Gable, Frank Gotch, Shawn Johnson, Zach Johnson, Lolo Jones, Nile Kinnick, George Saling, Kurt Warner, and Frank Wykoff.

State symbols

Nickname: The Hawkeye State Bird: Eastern Goldfinch Flower: Wild Rose Grass: Bluebunch Wheatgrass Tree: Oak Motto: "Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain." Rock: Geode

See also

List of National Register of Historic Places in Iowa

List of people from Iowa

U.S. state

Notes

References

Worldatlas.com

External links

Official State of Iowa Website

*Constitution of the state of Iowa

Iowa Travel and Tourism Division

Energy Data & Statistics for Iowa- From the U.S. Department of Energy

Iowa State Databases - Annotated list of searchable databases produced by Iowa state agencies and compiled by the Government Documents Roundtable of the American Library Association.

U.S. Census Bureau Quick Facts

Category:States of the United States Category:Midwestern United States Category:States and territories established in 1846

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The Iowa caucuses are an electoral event in which residents of the U.S. state of Iowa meet in precinct caucuses in all of Iowa's 1784 precincts and elect delegates to the corresponding county conventions. There are 99 counties in Iowa and thus 99 conventions. These county conventions then select delegates for both Iowa's Congressional District Convention and the State Convention, which eventually choose the delegates for the presidential nominating conventions (the national conventions). The 2012 Iowa Caucuses are scheduled to take place on February 6, 2012.

The Iowa caucuses are noteworthy for the amount of media attention they receive during U.S. presidential election years. Since 1972, the Iowa caucuses have been the first major electoral event of the nominating process for President of the United States. Although only about one percent of the nation's delegates are chosen by the Iowa State Convention, the Iowa caucuses have served as an early indication of which candidates for president might win the nomination of their political party at that party's national convention.

History

The Iowa caucuses are commonly recognized as the first step in the U.S. presidential nomination process for both the Democratic and the Republican Parties. They came to national attention in 1972 with a series of articles in the New York Times on how non-primary states choose their delegates for the national conventions. Democratic operative, Norma S. Matthews, state co-chair of the George McGovern campaign, helped engineer the early January start for Iowa. McGovern finished second to Edmund Muskie in the first early Iowa caucuses, but the momentum was sufficient for an ultimate Democratic nomination in 1972 for McGovern in Miami. Four years later, the Iowa Republican Party scheduled its party caucuses on the same date as the Democrats'.

In 1976, an uncommitted slate received the most support, followed by former Georgia governor Jimmy Carter, who came in a distant second, but won the most votes of any actual candidate. With no dominant front runner at the time, Carter was able to use the publicity of his "win" to achieve victory in the New Hampshire primary, and then to win his party's nomination and eventually the Presidency. Since then, Presidential candidates have increased their focus on winning the Iowa caucus.

In 1980, Republicans began the tradition of holding a straw poll at their caucuses, giving the appearance of a primary election. George H. W. Bush campaigned extensively in Iowa, defeating Ronald Reagan, but ultimately failed to win the nomination.

While they have been a financial boon to the state, the political value of the Iowa caucuses has gone up and down over the years. In 1988, for example, the candidates who eventually won the nominations of both parties came in third in Iowa. In elections without a sitting president or vice president, the Iowa winner has gone on to the nomination only about half the time (see below).

When Iowa senator Tom Harkin ran for the Democratic nomination in 1992, none of the other Democratic candidates chose to compete in Iowa, which minimized its importance in the nomination process. President George H. W. Bush was unopposed on the Republican side.

While the Democrats have tried to preserve the position of Iowa and New Hampshire in their nominating schedules, the Republicans have not. Alaska and Hawaii generally have their caucuses before Iowa, and in 1988 the Hawaii victory of Pat Robertson and the 1996 Louisiana victory of Pat Buchanan over Senator Phil Gramm had a significant impact on the results in Iowa.

The caucuses are closely followed by the media and can be an important factor in determining who remains in the race and who drops out. However, the only non-incumbent candidates to win their party's caucus and go on to win the general election were George W. Bush in 2000 and Barack Obama in 2008. Neither Reagan nor Bill Clinton won prior to their first terms. No incumbent President has run opposed in his own party's caucus since Jimmy Carter in 1980.

In the months leading up to the 2004 caucus, predictions showed candidates Dick Gephardt and Howard Dean neck-and-neck for first place, with John Kerry and John Edwards far behind them. Negative campaign ads attacking each other by the two front runners soured the voters on them, and a last minute decision by Kerry to put all his remaining money in Iowa swung voters towards him. Gephardt's presidential hopes were dashed and Dean's badly battered, as Kerry went on to become the third non-incumbent to win both Iowa and New Hampshire since Edmund Muskie in 1972 and Al Gore in 2000.

Process

The Iowa caucuses operate very differently from the more common primary election used by most other states (see U.S. presidential primary). The caucuses are generally defined as "gatherings of neighbors." Rather than going to polls and casting ballots, Iowans gather at a set location in each of Iowa's 1784 precincts. Typically, these meetings occur in schools, churches, public libraries and even individuals' houses. The caucuses are held every two years, but the ones that receive national attention are the presidential preference caucuses held every four years. In addition to the voting and the presidential preference choices, caucus-goers begin the process of writing their parties’ platforms by introducing resolutions.

Unlike the first-in-the-nation primary in New Hampshire, the Iowa caucus does not result directly in national delegates for each candidate. Instead, caucus-goers elect delegates to county conventions, who in turn elect delegates to district and state conventions where Iowa's national convention delegates are selected. Ironically, the state conventions do not take place until the end of the primary and caucus season: Iowa is in fact one of the very last states to choose its delegates.

The Republicans and Democrats each hold their own set of caucuses subject to their own particular rules that change from time to time. Participants in each party's caucuses must be registered with that party. Participants can change their registration at the caucus location. Additionally, 17-year-olds can participate, as long as they will be 18 years old by the date of the general election. Observers are allowed to attend, as long as they do not become actively involved in the debate and voting process. For example, members of the media and campaign staff and volunteers attend many of the precinct caucuses. Youth who will not be eligible to vote by the date of the general election may also attend as observers and may volunteer to attend the county convention as youth delegates.

Republican Party process

For the Republicans, the Iowa caucuses follow (and should not be confused with) the Ames Straw Poll in August of the preceding year. Out of the five Ames Straw Poll iterations, the winner of the Ames Straw Poll failed to win the Iowa caucuses twice, in 1987 and 2007.

In the Republican caucuses, each voter officially casts his or her vote by secret ballot. Voters are presented blank sheets of paper with no candidate names on them. After listening to some campaigning for each candidate by caucus participants, they write their choices down and the Republican Party of Iowa tabulates the results at each precinct and transmits them to the media. In 2008, some precincts used a show of hands or preprinted ballots. The non-binding results are tabulated and reported to the state party, which releases the results to the media. Delegates from the precinct caucuses go on to the county conventions, which choose delegates to the district conventions, which in turn selects delegates to the Iowa State Convention. Thus it is the Republican Iowa State Convention, not the precinct caucuses, which select the ultimate delegates from Iowa to the Republican National Convention. All delegates are officially unbound from the results of the precinct caucus, although media organizations either estimate delegate numbers by estimating county convention results or simply divide them proportionally.

Democratic Party process

The process used by the Democrats is more complex than the Republican Party caucus process. Each precinct divides its delegate seats among the candidates in proportion to caucus goers' votes.

Participants indicate their support for a particular candidate by standing in a designated area of the caucus site (forming a preference group). An area may also be designated for undecided participants. Then, for roughly 30 minutes, participants try to convince their neighbors to support their candidates. Each preference group might informally deputize a few members to recruit supporters from the other groups and, in particular, from among those undecided. Undecided participants might visit each preference group to ask its members about their candidate.

After 30 minutes, the electioneering is temporarily halted and the supporters for each candidate are counted. At this point, the caucus officials determine which candidates are viable. Depending on the number of county delegates to be elected, the viability threshold is 15% of attendees. For a candidate to receive any delegates from a particular precinct, he or she must have the support of at least the percentage of participants required by the viability threshold. Once viability is determined, participants have roughly another 30 minutes to realign: the supporters of inviable candidates may find a viable candidate to support, join together with supporters of another inviable candidate to secure a delegate for one of the two, or choose to abstain. This realignment is a crucial distinction of caucuses in that (unlike a primary) being a voter's second candidate of choice can help a candidate.

When the voting is closed, a final head count is conducted, and each precinct apportions delegates to the county convention. These numbers are reported to the state party, which counts the total number of delegates for each candidate and reports the results to the media. Most of the participants go home, leaving a few to finish the business of the caucus: each preference group elects its delegates, and then the groups reconvene to elect local party officers and discuss the platform.

The delegates chosen by the precinct then go to a later caucus, the county convention, to choose delegates to the district convention and state convention. Most of the delegates to the Democratic National Convention are selected at the district convention, with the remaining ones selected at the state convention. Delegates to each level of convention are initially bound to support their chosen candidate but can later switch in a process very similar to what goes on at the precinct level; however, as major shifts in delegate support are rare, the media declares the candidate with the most delegates on the precinct caucus night the winner, and relatively little attention is paid to the later caucuses.

2004 Democratic process

In 2004, the meetings ran from 6:30 p.m. until approximately 8:00 p.m. on January 19, 2004, with a turnout of about 124,000 caucus-goers. The county convention occurred on March 13, the district convention on April 24, and the state convention on June 26. Delegates could and did change their votes based on further developments in the race; for instance, in 2004 the delegates pledged to Dick Gephardt, who left the race after the precinct caucuses, chose a different candidate to support at the county, district, and state level.

The number of delegates each candidate receives eventually determines how many state delegates from Iowa that candidate will have at the Democratic National Convention. Iowa sends 56 delegates to the DNC out of a total 4,366.

Of the 45 delegates that were chosen through the caucus system, 29 were chosen at the district level. Ten delegates were at-large delegates, and six were "party leader and elected official" (PLEO) delegates; these were assigned at the state convention. There were also 11 other delegates, eight of whom were appointed from local Democratic National Committee members - two were PLEO delegates and one was elected at the state Democratic convention.

2008 process

The 2008 Iowa caucuses took place January 3 at 7 p.m. CT. Candidates spent tens of millions of dollars on local television advertisements and hundreds of paid staff in dozens of field offices. Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee were the eventual winners.

Past winners

Candidates in bold eventually won their party's nomination. Candidates in italics subsequently won the general election.

Democrats

January 3, 2008 - Barack Obama (38%), John Edwards (30%), Hillary Clinton (29%), Bill Richardson (2%), Joe Biden (1%)

January 19, 2004 - John Kerry (38%), John Edwards (32%), Howard Dean (18%), Dick Gephardt (11%), and Dennis Kucinich (1%)

January 24, 2000 - Al Gore (63%) and Bill Bradley (37%)

February 12, 1996 - Bill Clinton (unopposed)

February 10, 1992 - Tom Harkin (76%), "Uncommitted" (12%), Paul Tsongas (4%), Bill Clinton (3%), Bob Kerrey (2%), and Jerry Brown (2%)

February 8, 1988 - Dick Gephardt (31%), Paul Simon (27%), Michael Dukakis (22%), and Bruce Babbitt (6%)

February 20, 1984 - Walter Mondale (49%), Gary Hart (17%), George McGovern (10%), Alan Cranston (7%), John Glenn (4%), Reubin Askew (3%), and Jesse Jackson (2%)

January 21, 1980 - Jimmy Carter (59%) and Ted Kennedy (31%)

January 19, 1976 - "Uncommitted" (37%), Jimmy Carter (28%) Birch Bayh (13%), Fred R. Harris (10%), Morris Udall (6%), Sargent Shriver (3%), and Henry M. Jackson (1%)

January 24, 1972 - "Uncommitted" (36%), Edmund Muskie (36%), George McGovern (23%), Hubert Humphrey (2%), Eugene McCarthy (1%), Shirley Chisholm (1%), and Henry M. Jackson (1%)

Republicans

2008 - Mike Huckabee (34%), Mitt Romney (25%), Fred Thompson (13%), John McCain (13%), Ron Paul (10%), Rudy Giuliani (4%), and Duncan Hunter (1%)

2004 - George W. Bush (unopposed)

2000 - George W. Bush (41%), Steve Forbes (30%), Alan Keyes (14%), Gary Bauer (9%), John McCain (5%), and Orrin Hatch (1%)

1996 - Bob Dole (26%), Pat Buchanan (23%), Lamar Alexander (18%), Steve Forbes (10%), Phil Gramm (9%), Alan Keyes (7%), Richard Lugar (4%), and Morry Taylor (1%)

1992 - George H. W. Bush (unopposed)

1988 - Bob Dole (37%), Pat Robertson (25%), George H. W. Bush (19%), Jack Kemp (11%), and Pierre DuPont (7%)

1984 - Ronald Reagan (unopposed)

1980 - George H. W. Bush (32%), Ronald Reagan (30%), Howard Baker (15%), John Connally (9%), Phil Crane (7%), John B. Anderson (4%), and Bob Dole (2%)

1976 - Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan

Controversy

There is a debate over the effectiveness and usefulness of caucuses in Iowa. One criticism is that the caucuses, especially the Democratic caucus, are a step backwards from the right to a secret ballot.

Democratic caucus participants (though not Republicans, whose caucuses vote by secret ballot) must publicly state their opinion and vote, leading to natural problems such as peer pressure from neighbors and embarrassment over who his or her preferred candidate might be. Another criticism involves the sheer amount of participants' time these events consume.

An Iowa caucus can last up around two hours, preventing people who must work, who are sick, or must take care of their children from casting their vote. Absentee voting is also barred, so soldiers who come from Iowa, but must serve in the military, lose their vote. The final criticism is the complexity of the rules in terms of how one's vote counts, as it is not a simple popular vote.

Arguments in favor of caucuses include the belief that they favor more motivated participants than simple ballots, and that supporters of non-viable candidates are able to realign with a more popular candidate and still make their vote count.

Each precinct's vote may be weighed differently due to its past voting record. Ties can be solved by picking a name out of a hat or a simple coin toss, leading to anger over the true democratic nature of these caucuses. Additionally, the representation of the caucus has had a traditionally low turnout. Others question the permanent feature of having caucuses in certain states, while perpetually ignoring the rest of the country.

Notes

Further reading

Hull, Christopher C. 2007. Grassroots Rules: How The Iowa Caucus Helps Elect American Presidents. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press

Redlawsk, David P., Caroline J. Tolbert, and Todd Donovan, 2011. Why Iowa?: How Caucuses and Sequential Elections Improve the Presidential Nominating Process. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, www.whyiowa.org

Skipper, John C., 2009. "The Iowa Caucuses: First Test of Presidential Aspirations, 1972-2008. McFarland Publishing, Jefferson, N.C., www.mcfarlandpub.com

Squire, Peverill, ed. 1989. The Iowa Caucuses and the Presidential Nominating Process. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press.

Winebrenner, Hugh. 1998. The Iowa Precinct Caucuses: The Making of a Media Event. 2nd ed. Ames: Iowa State University Press.

External links

http://desmoinesregister.com/caucus (2008 cycle)

http://www.bobwellsradio.com/cpoliticaldictionary.htm (A guide to the Iowa Caucuses)

(David Yepsen)

http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/primaries/pages/states/IA/index.html

Live Democratic Party coverage and results

Iowa Caucus 2008 (official site)

Category:Politics of Iowa Category:United States presidential primaries

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