DES MOINES, Iowa – In the Hawkeye state, where tractors plow the fields, faith whispers in the wind and political rallies and town halls echo through the streets, a dubious duo emerges – Tractors and Politics.
When Gary Leffler inherited a 1957 Ford tractor and simultaneously inherited another tractor, he decided he wanted to honor our soldiers and our country using the 1957 Ford Tractor. Leffler hired Sue Hopper, a local artist, to help him achieve his goal by hand-painting his tractor in 21 days.
“He brought the tractor to my shop and told me he wanted to honor our soldiers and our country,” Hopper said. “A couple years later he called me and said my artwork changed their lives. I don’t think he even thought how popular that tractor would become.”
Leffler and his wife, Janell, take the tractor to political events, rallies, festivals and parades all over the state and have even traveled to the National Independence Parade in Washington D.C. Traveling all over Iowa and to places like the nation’s capital can get expensive, but besides the occasional $100 bill he and his wife are given, it all comes out of their pockets. The Lefflers aren’t concerned with the money but are more worried about giving back.
“My wife and I pay for most of the expenses, sometimes we are gifted money but we do this to give back to our country,” Leffler said. “The very first tractor run we did we had a reporter ask if the John 316 written on the tractor was the model, after explaining it was a Bible verse and her understanding it must be important since that day we have passed out over 10,000 Bible tracks,” Leffler said.
Usually nicknamed the “Patriotic Tractor” the tractor takes on a new persona when former President Donald Trump runs for office, the “Trump Tractor” especially during the Iowa caucuses. It has attracted the attention of people and has become a pop-up monument that people like to photograph when it shows up at Trump rallies.
“The tractor shows commitment, commitment to create it and bring it to so many events,” said Angela Houston, a Trump volunteer.
“It is about both what the tractor represents in the Make American Great Again movement as well as the big personality Gary has that encourages people to get excited.”
Politics has been a part of Leffler’s life since former President Ronald Reagan ran for the White House. He has been a registered Republican since the age of 18. Now at the age of 62, Leffler has devoted his time to getting people to vote and especially now to participate in the Iowa Caucus.
Gaylord News is a reporting project of the University of Oklahoma Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. For more stories by Gaylord News go to GaylordNews.Net.
