By Kyle Trygstad

While antiestablishmentarianism may be running rampant in elections across the country, it skipped one state entirely on Tuesday night. Iowa Republicans flocked to the kind of "insiders" that voters elsewhere were bent on rejecting.

For governor, a GOP majority opted for former four-term Gov. Terry Branstad over Tea Party-backed businessman Bob Vander Plaats. It's hard to get more establishment than someone whose previous tenure in the same office spanned the Reagan-to-Clinton administrations. Likewise, in Iowa's 1st Congressional district, a former congressional aide (read: ties to Washington) easily defeated a Ron Paul activist. In the 2nd district, Mariannette Miller-Meeks was given her second try at unseating Democratic Rep. Dave Loebsack, who beat her last time by 57% to 38%.

In Iowa's 3rd Congressional district, state Sen. Brad Zaun -- the only candidate with any political experience at all -- easily met the 35% threshold to claim the GOP nomination outright. Few handicappers had expected any of the seven candidates to emerge as a clear winner. Mr. Zaun, a former town mayor and hardware store owner, will now take on eight-term Democrat Leonard Boswell in what should be a closely-watched race in the fall.

As the results poured in Tuesday night, the Des Moines Register's Kathie Obradovich video-blogged in evident surprise: "Political experience is trumping the sort of outside vibe or insurgency campaigns that we've seen a lot of here in Iowa."

To be sure, plenty of anti-establishment, anti-incumbent sentiment was evident around the country. But don't let anyone tell you Sen. Blanche Lincoln in Arkansas was the only veteran to defy the mood. Iowa loves a familiar political face too.