Iowa voters open to moving on from Trump

Carter King, a student at Dordt University, a christian college in Sioux Center, Iowa on Nov. 7, 2023.

Rachel Mummey for NPR

Americans will head to the polls in less than a year to elect a new president. Iowa will play a pivotal role in narrowing down the Republican field of candidates during its January caucuses. The current GOP frontrunner, former President Donald Trump, won the state in 2020 by more than eight percentage points. He had his strongest showing in Sioux County, where he won nearly 82% of the vote.

The county, which is located in the state’s northwest corner, is considered to be one of Iowa’s most conservative. But even the people there seem increasingly willing to consider alternatives to Trump. That includes 20-year-old university student Carter King.

“He kind of feels like a little bit of a loose cannon right now. You don’t really know what you’re going to get,” King told Morning Edition.. King, who hails from Austin, Texas, attends Dordt University in Sioux Center, Iowa.

Student study in a common area known as Jacob’s Ladder at Dordt University, a christian college, in Sioux Center, Iowa, on Nov. 7, 2023.

Rachel Mummey for NPR

Dordt University describes itself as the top-ranked Christian college, with a student body of roughly 1,900. Republican candidates regularly make their way to Sioux Center and surrounding communities to speak with voters. This includes Trump, who last visited the area in early November.

In 2016, then candidate Trump made headlines…