Trump s Hold on Rural America Is Key to His Resilience – WSJ

GARNER, Iowa Republican voters in Hancock County largely rejected Donald Trump eight years ago, giving him less than a fifth of the vote in the GOP caucuses. As recently as a year ago, some party faithful here and elsewhere in Iowa seemed eager to move on, saying they were tired of the former president s chaos and liabilities.

Now Trump appears poised to win this county Monday and claim victory in Iowa s caucuses, powered largely by his overwhelming support among rural voters who see him as the best candidate to advance a populist conservative agenda. That pattern has played out in similar places across the country, helping explain why Trump has a hold over the Republican Party and is the nomination front-runner.

Trump arrives at the caucuses that kick off 2024 nominating contests with baggage that would likely stop any other politician. He faces 91 criminal charges related to everything from his handling of classified documents to efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. He has used language that echoes Adolf Hitler. And he led his party to election losses in 2018, 2020 and 2022.

In Hancock County, none of that matters to many GOP voters. The fact that so many damning allegations against Trump have been aired is a strength, they say, because it suggests he s unlikely to be derailed by a new tarnishing revelation. Many GOP voters here think Trump is most likely to achieve their ultimate goal defeating President Biden because he is a proven commodity and ties or beats the incumbent in general election polls.

via www.wsj.com