DES MOINES, Iowa —

More than 2,000 Iowans participated in the straw poll at the Iowa Secretary of State's booth during the Iowa State Fair, with voters from both parties selecting favorites in the 2026 races for governor, U.S. Senate, and Congress. However, KCCI's political analyst Dennis Goldford emphasized that the results do not represent Iowa voters as a whole.

"It's a kind of parlor game," Goldford said.

He added that the straw poll is not scientific.

"In a scientific poll, the sample of people who are asked questions is a random bunch of people," he said. "This means that everybody has an equal chance at stating an opinion."

» See all of our Iowa State Fair coverage here .

He said the fair survey does not operate in this manner.

"It's more like a campaign event than a

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