Immigration and Social Issues, Not Iraq, Dominate Among Iowa Republican Voters

This story is a collaborative effort between Iowa Independent and Huffington Post's OffTheBus. As part of our investigation, OffTheBus members spoke with more than a third of Iowa's Republican county chairs. The team was coordinated by Theresa Weathers and Steven Greenberg, and interviews were conducted by Kirsten Anderson, Mariangela Anzalone, Robin Carpenter, Adam Dancy, Kim Farris, Mayhill Fowler, Melissa Hapke, Saba Kennedy-Washington, Chris Nelson, P.S. Peete, Heidi Pickman, Constance Sere, Randall Tigue, John Tomasic.

While the war in Iraq might loom large in the minds of Democratic caucus-goers, Iowa Republicans are much more focused on immigration and cultural issues, according to a new survey of state GOP chairs. The local Republican officials, like the leading GOP presidential candidates with the exception of Ron Paul, mostly agree that a stable Iraq is key to U.S. national security and the war on terror. But the Iraq war itself is not playing out as a stand-alone voting issue.

"The war is certainly an issue, but I don't think it carries the same impact the media says it does," said John Markham, chair of the Dubuque County Republican Party in eastern Iowa.

The war is "probably not [hitting home] as much as it was two years ago," said Rev. Harold Miller, who served as chair of the Grundy County Republican Party until recently.

In a series of phone interviews conducted by Huffington Post's OffTheBus project, 37 of Iowa's Republican county chairs were asked to name the issues most important to GOP caucus-goers this year. Almost universally, immigration and social issues were mentioned. Asked about the Iraq War, many county chairs downplayed its significance.

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