Stats show U.S., Iowa close in president vote

As most of the country demands that Iowa no longer be first in the presidential selection process because we are not “representative” of the country as a whole, I urge people to examine the results of the last five presidential elections:

In November 1992, Iowa voted: Bill Clinton, 43.3 percent; George Bush, 37.3 percent; Ross Perot, 18.7 percent. In November 1992, the country voted: Clinton, 43.0 percent; Bush, 37.4 percent; Perot, 18.9 percent.

In November 1996, Iowa voted: Clinton,

50.3 percent, Bob Dole, 39.9 percent; Perot,

8.5 percent. In November 1996, the country voted: Clinton, 49.2 percent; Dole, 40.7 percent; Perot, 8.4 percent.

In November 2000, Iowa voted: Gore, 48.5, Bush, 48.2. In November 2000, the country voted: Gore, 48.4, Bush 47.9 (Bush won electoral vote total).

In November 2004, Iowa voted Bush, 49.9, Kerry 49.2. In November 2004, the country voted Bush 50.6, Kerry 48.1.

In November 2008, Iowa voted Obama 53.9, McCain 44.4. In November 2008, the country voted Obama 52.9, McCain 45.6.

There is no state whose combined last five presidential election percentages were closer to the national percentages than Iowa's. Call us “unrepresentative” if you must, but you can't argue with statistics.

I know it seems unlikely, but Iowa is the state that most closely mirrors the national voting percentages in November and we deserve to be the first state that begins the process of choosing the president.

Gary Sanders

Iowa City