Dubuque's state (4)
I believe the answer is:
'dubuque's state' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for iowa that I've seen before include "part of United States" , "American state, capital Des Moines" , "part of US" , "State of USA" , "US state, three vowels" .)