The Washington Examiner reported the results of the Iowa Straw Poll late yesterday afternoon.  Michele Bachmann won by 152 votes, with Ron Paul coming in second.  What is the world does this mean?  Well, frankly, not a whole lot.

The article at the Washington Examiner reported that 16,892 Iowans voted in the straw poll.  The straw poll is something that generally only the truly motivated voter takes part in.  In 2008, Mitt Romney won and Mike Huckabee came in second.

In writing about the Iowa Straw Poll, Wikipedia (not my favorite source, but ok on this sort of thing) reports:

Non-Republicans are allowed to vote in the Ames Straw Poll. However, all voters must be at least 16 1/2 years of age, be legal residents of the state of Iowa or a student attending an Iowa university/college, and purchase a ticket priced at $30, however some campaigns pay the fee for their supporters.^[3] Voters have their hands stamped or their thumbs dipped in ink when entering the voting area so that they cannot vote twice. Ballots are put into electronic voting machines.

The message I hear in this vote is that Iowa (which supported President Obama 53.93 percent to John McCain 44.39 percent in 2008) is not happy with the status quo.  The top three votegetters all campaigned on smaller government and cutting spending. None of the top three winners are what I would call establishment Republicans.  The message I hear in this vote is that the mainstream Republican Party had better get back to its conservative roots.  The voters want more Ronald Reagan and less John McCain.

Any poll or primary election that allows members of the opposing party to vote in the primary or poll should not be taken as a valid picture of that party’s voters.  I firmly believe that the mainstream media believes that the only way President Obama can win a second term is for the media to choose the Republican candidate.  I believe that they did that in 2008 with John McCain.  I suspect they will try to do it again.

If Republicans truly want to win in 2012, they need to start paying close attention to what is going on now–not wait until October of next year.  Americans need to learn to do their own research and to understand that there will be people attempting to throw roadblocks in the way of any candidate capable of beating President Obama. The attacks on Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, and Mitt Romney have already begun.  One thing I learned when I volunteered for a political campaign in 2010 was that campaign workers routinely check blogs and online news sources to leave comments that favor their candidate or criticize the opposing candidate.  I do not filter comments on this website according to content–only for language and relevance.  You may read a comment on this site put here by a campaign worker of a candidate I am not supporting.  Be aware of what you are reading and its source–but read everything about all the candidates you can find.  We elect the leaders we deserve.