The 2025 Iowa State Fair closed Sunday after drawing more than one million visitors, according to organizers, putting the annual event on course to challenge its all-time attendance record. Fair officials also said the Grandstand set a new ticket-sales record, underscoring the popularity of this year’s concert lineup. Cultural traditions remained a major draw. Waterloo native Aleesha Smith, 17, won the Bill Riley Talent Search on the fair’s final day, securing the $10,000 first-place prize for her vocal performance before a packed crowd at the Anne and Bill Riley Stage. The fair doubled as a political backdrop, with lawmakers including Representative Zach Nunn filming campaign material on John Deere tractors and promoting former President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” tax package. Farmers who flocked to the fairgrounds expressed mixed views on the legislation and on the continuing U.S.–China tariff war, highlighting the broader policy debates playing out alongside the midway.