A focus group of rural and suburban Iowa voters who cast ballots for President Donald Trump in 2024 delivered an unwelcome message for Republicans: not one participant said they are voting for — or even leaning toward — the party's U.S. Senate candidate, Ashley Hinson.

Hinson currently represents Iowa in the U.S. House and is running for the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Republican Senator Joni Ernst.

Elise Jordan showed clips from the meeting, in which she asked the independents where they were leaning with 19 days left before the election. Not one person said they were voting for Hinson, and not one said they were leaning toward voting for her. Focus groups can't measure a race the way polls do — they are qualitative snapshots of a small group of voters, not statistical samples — but campaigns watch them closely for an unfiltered read on the coalition they need. In a state Trump won by double digits in 2024, this panel sat squarely inside that coalition.

The voters did have reservations about Hinson's Democratic opponent, Josh Turek, saying they wished he would talk more about what he wants to do rather than his background. Even so, one voter said his advertising is making a stronger impression: "His ads are better than hers. I mean, he at least — like perception — again and the narrative in his ad is that he's more among the people, or he at least he's engaging with people. I just see him being a little bit more diverse than what her ads have been."

When Jordan asked what comes to mind at the mention of Hinson's name, a woman immediately jumped in: "Out of touch."

"You know, with the war in Iran and now she's kind of changing her stance, you know, while she's behind in the polls," one woman said.

Another comment pointed to inconsistency: "She's been a 'yes' woman for a long time. And now all of a sudden her tune is changing. So it's hard to know really where she stands."

One participant suggested Ture's personal history gives him an edge on affordability: "I think since Turek has — because he's gone through his own battles and so has his father. I think he has a more relatable stance on it regards to cost and how it affects all of us rather than she does. But if we want change, then we can't necessarily vote for Trump 'yes men' either. So it's kind of stuck between two hard places."

The group did credit Hinson for voting to stop insider trading and for dumping all of her stocks. "Yet, she's still a millionaire," one woman said. Individual stock trading by sitting members of Congress has been a bipartisan flashpoint on Capitol Hill for years, fueling repeated legislative proposals to restrict the practice.

Her finances dominated much of the conversation. "Ashley Hinson got a lot of money, and she's still getting a lot of money," one woman said. "I think she's still got a lot of money," another added. "No, I know, but if we are comparing the two of them," the first replied, referring to the Senate candidates.

When Jordan asked if anyone was leaning toward Hinson, a man said he wanted to be because he supports Republicans, "but I can't with all the bad things and all the money and all this stuff."

The group agreed that the factor influencing their votes most was how much money Hinson has made while in office. "It just makes you question, why are these people going into politics," another woman said. "Is it just to use us and to get rich? Or is it actually to help your community?"

A few participants said they were likely to vote for Turek, and one said he had not ruled him out. They simply want to know his plans, and they particularly liked that he wants to work across the aisle and supports border security. With under three weeks until Election Day, the session leaves both campaigns facing open questions: whether Turek can supply the specifics these voters said they want, and whether the wealth concerns that dominated this room echo beyond it.

Watch the full focus group discussion on YouTube: https://youtu.be/9TOPdI3LC9w?si=jSBds4G5Knzy0S7U&t=174

Source: Alternet