Prof. James D. Long was interviewed in the Wallet Hub web site in regards to the importance of the Iowa Caucus for the Republican political race, in particular.
Does it make sense to have Iowa be the first primary contest given that its demographic and economic profile is very different from the national electorate?
Referencing the Republican primary specifically, Iowa in many ways does make sense to be "first in the (Republican) nation" given that Iowa skews white and Evangelical, two constituencies Republicans need to win nationwide. Moreover, Republicans often use Iowa to test various economic messaging around de-industrialization, farm policy, manufacturing, and globalization/trade policy that they believe may help appeal to working-class voters in other states, particularly in the upper Midwest and Midwest.
For the full interview please link here.