Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders are the top vote-getters among presidential candidates in Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate’s Iowa Youth Straw Poll. Thousands of students across the state voted in the poll on Tuesday.
As of 4:30 p.m., with more than 21,000 votes cast, Donald Trump leads all presidential candidates with 35% of the vote overall, and more than 90% among Republican candidates. Bernie Sanders is the runaway favorite among Democratic candidates and has picked up 15% of the overall total. Joe Biden stands a distant second among Democrats at 8%. Pete Buttigieg and Andrew Yang are third and fourth, at 7%.
Many Youth Straw Poll participants will be eligible to participate in next year Iowa Caucuses, June primaries and the November 2020 general election. A recent law change allows Iowa 17-year-olds to register to vote and cast ballots in primaries if they will be 18 by Election Day.
“Young people are making their voices heard in record numbers and I think they will be a significant voting bloc in the 2020 elections,” Secretary Pate said. “I hope the candidates are paying attention.”
Among U.S. Senate candidates, Republican Joni Ernst is easily outdistancing the field, surpassing more than 51 percent of the overall vote. Kimberly Graham leads all Democrat candidates with 19% overall, followed by Eddie Mauro at 13% and Theresa Greenfield at 10%.
Iowa’s four U.S. Congressional races were also polled. Democrat Abby Finkenauer garnered 51% of the overall vote in the First District. Republican Bobby Schilling leads the way in the Second District, with 40%. Democrat Cindy Axne is the top choice in the Third District, at 45%, followed by David Young at 38%. Republican Steve King leads all candidates in the Fourth District, with 47% of the votes.
The Iowa Youth Straw Poll is open to students of every grade level and youth civic organizations. It is an unscientific poll and designed to be a hands-on learning experience that will hopefully inspire future civic engagement. Each candidate was asked to submit a short video message to students. Those can be viewed at this link.
Vote totals are available by clicking here. More results are expected to be received on Wednesday.
Photos of students participating in the Youth Straw Poll are available on Twitter and Facebook, using the #BeAVoter hashtag. The posts are retweeted and shared on Secretary Pate’s social media accounts.
