Iowa votes: Some predict similar outcome no matter which presidential candidate is chosen

Voters cast their ballots Nov. 5, 2024 at the Redfield American Legion in Redfield, Ia. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

After casting her vote Tuesday evening at the Redfield American Legion, Susan Barnett said she wished she could just vote for Mickey Mouse instead.

“I’m tired of voting for the lesser of two evils,” Barnett said.

Other western Iowa voters expressed similar sentiments, saying it would be equally good or bad regardless of which candidate wins.

The lesser evil for Barnett was former President Donald Trump, though she said he is too conservative. Vice President Kamala Harris, however, is too liberal, and Barnett didn’t agree with her tax plans. One issue she hadn’t heard either candidate address is Social Security and ensuring its future stability for Americans.

“In my opinion, we need someone closer to the middle to make our country better, not so far left or so far right,” Barnett said.

Barnett was confident that Trump would win, “unfortunately,” she said.

Perry voter Beverly Xuncax said that while she voted for Trump, she wouldn’t mind if Harris won the presidency. She also voted for Trump in 2020, and said she figured she’d vote for him again.

Xuncax and much of her family are concerned about immigration across the U.S.-Mexico border and migrants bringing crime into the country, she said.

Janet Sheehy, who also cast a ballot in Perry and named immigration as an issue she’s following, declined to say who she voted for. She did say she felt “scared” about the election.

Whether Harris or Trump wins, she said all people can do is vote and hope for the best.

“Darned if you do, and darned if you don’t,” Sheehy said.