Though perhaps is is redundant to refer to any American political event as a scam, the Iowa Straw Poll is most defintely a scam. To place any signifigance on the results of this "poll" is to be mal-informed. So of course the media places a great deal of emphasis on this event. In this "poll", Republican party members gather at the Iowa State Fair to "vote" after donating a sum of money to the Republican Party of Iowa.