My week in Iowa politics was about planning the county convention and finding a Democratic candidate to run for House District 91 and Senate District 46. One success and two failures.

At our precinct caucuses I volunteered to be on the committee on committees and attended the county-wide Zoom meeting. As in previous cycles, I volunteered for the Arrangements Committee where my background in transportation and logistics prepared me for anything that might happen. The co-chairs of the committee are great and the team put together what has the potential to be a valued convention. My first contribution was writing a paragraph about spreading contagious diseases for the convention booklet as follows:

Respiratory illnesses such as COVID-19 and influenza continue to circulate in our communities. To help reduce the risk of transmission, the Arrangements Committee will make face masks available at check-in for any attendee who wishes to use one.

I also volunteered to be an usher, directing people to designated sections of the seating area, to help set up and tear down, and be a general floater. We are almost ready with one week to go.

The search for candidates to run for the state house has been challenging. Because of a lack of interest in running for a seat currently occupied by a Republican, we have been seeking a person to prevent the Democratic ballot from being blank. In my experience, that’s not the best situation for voters or for candidates. While we are part of the so-called “liberal Johnson County,” our area has been trending Republican after twice voting for Obama as president and for Trump three times. I have been represented by a Republican House member beginning in 2013, and a Republican Senator after redistricting in 2023. Last cycle, no Democrat on our precinct ballot was the top vote-getter.

In the 2022 Iowa Senate election, Republican Dawn Driscoll and Democrat Kevin Kinney duked it out in an expensive election to determine the future of the new district. The senate district leans Republican and Driscoll became our current senator, also defeating Democrat Ed Chabal in 2024. A few Democrats were kicking the tires on a run this year, yet no one is apparently collecting nominating petitions due yesterday.

Finding a Democrat to run in House District 91 has also been challenging. Elle Wyant ran in 2022, and Jay Gorsh in 2024. Both were great people who had commitments at work that held them from proper campaigning. As of the filing deadline, no one has stepped forward.

The secretary of state continues to review petition signatures and will release names once the paperwork has gone through the process. Click here to access the most recent 2026 Primary Candidate list.

Even though the right candidate could beat Republicans in this district, after ten years of Bobby Kaufmann, and a new district favoring Republicans in 2022, I am resigned to work with Republicans to get anything done. My email contacts with my state senator and representative have been cordial and their responses quickly delivered. There is not much else to do if no Democrat will run.

Another local political issue took time this week: the event we are holding for Democratic candidates for county supervisor on March 28. Thanks to the Republican nanny state, we are electing supervisors in new districts instead of at large. The result is a slew of Democratic contenders to run against incumbents across the county. More on this next Saturday.

Keep working it, people. You know that’s the only way to win back our state!