Gubernatorial stability in Iowa: a stranglehold on power

Since 1969, governors of Iowa have averaged a decade in office, significantly longer than their peers in other states. Why? This book draws on approval data, interviews with politicos around the state, including two former governors, and a statewide survey of Iowa voters to explain Iowa's unique tendency to reelect governors at an unprecedented rate. Results show that Iowa voters give their governors considerable leeway so long as they feel personally connected to the person holding that office. Iowa voters expect their governor to be out and about on a regular basis, an expectation that is fueled by Iowa's position as holding the first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses. A sagging economy doesn't necessarily spell electoral doom for a governor if he perceived as working hard on behalf of the electorate. When that feeling of connectivity is absent, however, such factors weigh heavily on governor's reelection prospects.