--- title: The 2023 Iowa State Fair in Photos description: A roundup of the best photos from the Iowa State Fair and the 2024 political candidates who attended. canonical: https://time.com/6304599/iowa-state-fair-2023-photos/ author: Kim Bubello article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2023-08-14T16:41:02.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:49:44.062Z article:section: Politics og:title: The Best Photos from the Iowa State Fair og:description: From presidential candidates to cattle to butter sculptures. og:url: https://time.com/6304599/iowa-state-fair-2023-photos/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24602774c48390f0/698a3f85457a5271c1d67de9/iowa-state-fair-2023-113.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: Presidential Hopefuls Make The Rounds At The Iowa State Fair og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Best Photos from the Iowa State Fair twitter:description: From presidential candidates to cattle to butter sculptures. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24602774c48390f0/698a3f85457a5271c1d67de9/iowa-state-fair-2023-113.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- # The Best Photos From the Iowa State Fair > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: 2024 Presidential Candidates Campaign at the Iowa State Fair [Watch (HLS stream): 2024 Presidential Candidates Campaign at the Iowa State Fair](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/7DH5kdUH.m3u8) (3:16)  _Published 2023-08-14. A host of 2024 presidential candidates visited the Iowa State Fair to mingle with voters ahead of the state's first-in-the-nation nominating caucuses._ Aug 14, 2023 4:41 PM UTC  People cheer as former President Donald Trump exits after speaking during a rally at the Steer 27 Stein bar at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 12, 2023. People cheer as former President Donald Trump exits after speaking during a rally at the Steer 27 Stein bar at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 12, 2023. Brandon Bell—Getty Images by [Kim Bubello](https://time.com/author/kim-bubello/) and [Nik Popli](https://time.com/author/nik-popli/) Aug 14, 2023 4:41 PM UTC A host of presidential candidates visited the Iowa State Fair over the weekend to flip pork chops, view a life-size cow sculpted out of butter, and mingle with voters ahead of the state's first-in-the-nation nominating caucuses in January. Both of the leading Republican presidential candidates—[former President Donald Trump](https://time.com/6298840/donald-trump-indictment-jan-6-jack-smith/) and [Florida Governor Ron DeSantis](https://time.com/6280707/ron-desantis-time-cover/)—made a campaign stop to the fairgrounds on Saturday along with [former Vice President Mike Pence](https://time.com/6301138/mike-pence-testify-trump-indictment/), former U.N. Ambassador [Nikki Haley](https://time.com/6273545/nikki-haley-presidential-campaign-2024/), Democratic candidates [Marianne Williamson](https://time.com/6282695/marianne-williamson-interview-bernie-sanders-biden/) and [Robert F. Kennedy Jr.](https://time.com/6287001/rfk-jr-interview-2024-campaign/), and other [presidential hopefuls](https://time.com/6256382/who-is-running-for-president-2024/). Campaigning at the Iowa State Fair has been one of the nation’s most famous political traditions since 1972, when the state began holding the first presidential nominating contests in the country. At the fair, which attracts about a million people over 10 days, Trump posed for selfies, passed out Make America Great Again hats, and gave a speech in which he repeated false claims about the 2020 election. DeSantis toured the fairgrounds with his family and flipped pork chops with Iowa's governor, though his remarks were interrupted by protesters blowing loud whistles and clanging cowbells. Longer-shot candidates also tried to leave an impression with voters, including entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who performed a rap of Eminem’s “Lose Yourself." Here are some of the best photos from the Iowa State Fair.  Fairgoers ride the Sky Glider past a wind turbine during the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, on Aug. 10. Al Drago—Bloomberg/Getty Images  A judge evaluates contestants' livestock during a competition inside the Sheep Barn on Aug. 11. Brandon Bell—Getty Images  Florida Governor and Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis shakes hands with supporters at the conclusion of one of Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds' "Fair-Side Chats" on Aug. 12. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Tinsel and tennis shoes hang off the side of a float in the Iowa State Fair Kick-Off Parade along East Grand Avenue on Aug. 9. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Republican presidential candidate former Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence pose for selfies with supporters on Aug. 10. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Supporters cheer as Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump arrives for a rally at the Steer N' Stein bar at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 12. Brandon Bell—Getty Images  Fairgoers stop to view the butter sculptures, the cow, Caitlin Clark, Kurt Warner and Jack Trice, on the first day of the Iowa State Fair, on Aug. 10. Kelsey Kremer—The Register/Reuters  Five-year-old Jack Sawyer, of Dillon, Iowa, lays on the back of a cow in the cattle barn on Aug. 9. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., speaks during The Des Moines Register Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair, on Aug. 12. Jeff Roberson—AP  People try to catch a glimpse of former President Donald Trump at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 12. Stefani Reynolds—AFP/Getty Images  Former South Carolina Governor and Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley speaks with a young fairgoer on Aug. 12. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Children lay on the ground while listening to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis participate in a "Fair-Side Chat" on Aug. 12. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Secret Service scans workers ahead of an appearance by former President Donald Trump at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 12. Stefani Reynolds—AFP/Getty Images  A supporter looks at a selfie she took with biotech millionaire and Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Aug. 12. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Two men make their way across the fairgrounds during the opening day of the Iowa State Fair, on Aug. 10. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Republican presidential candidate former Vice President Mike Pence speaks to fairgoers on Aug. 10. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Cobs of corn are judged in the agriculture building on Aug. 10. Al Drago—Bloomberg/Getty Images  Former President Donald Trump tosses a hat in the air while supporters cheer for him on Aug. 12. Demetrius Freeman—The Washington Post/Getty Images  Trump campaign workers hold Trump flags for a photo opportunity with Kari Lake, former Republican candidate for Governor of Arizona, at the cattle barn on Aug. 11. Evelyn Hockstein—Reuters  A contestant competes in the Western Open Horse show on Aug. 13. 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