On Tuesday, seven states will hold primaries, including Iowa where three Democrats are competing for the nomination of long-serving Republican U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley.
Ex-Rep. Abby Finkenauer is one of the candidates for this chance. She defeated a Republican incumbent in 2018, and served just one term in the U.S. House of Representatives before she lost her reelection bid two year ago.
Now, at age 33, Finkenauer is facing a tougher-than-expected U.S. Senate primary in a state that has become more of a GOP stronghold in the last decade.
Finkenauer often points out the generational differences between her campaign team and Grassley (88 years old), when she speaks on the campaign trail regarding issues such as abortion rights, college debt, and gun restrictions.
Finkenauer visited Dubuque, Mississippi, the day following the mass shooting at Robb Elementary school in Uvalde (Texas), on September 12. She spoke about the life she has lived with school shootings in America for most of her adulthood.
Finkenauer told a small group at Dimensional Brewing that he was 10 years old when Columbine occurred. “Sen. Grassley was already in Washington, D.C. at that time for 23 years.”
She stated to the crowd that they already know her position on guns. Like when she “proudly supported H.R. 8 closing the background check loophole, and supporting red flag laws.
Voters such as Tom Townesend support Finkenauer’s return to Washington. At the Dubuque campaign stop, he introduced her.
Townesend, who works with the local union of electrical workers, said that she worked on building trades issues all her time in Congress. “She is a great friend to all union members.”
Finkenauer has faced some setbacks during this race. After a pair Republican activists challenged her nomination petitions, Finkenauer almost missed the primary ballot. It reached the Iowa Supreme Court.
One of her opponents also keeps his fundraising numbers competitive.
Retired Navy Adm. Mike Franken was in the military for almost 40 years. He returned to Iowa before the 2020 election, and unsuccessfully ran for the nomination for his party in a different U.S. Senate seat.
According to the 64-year old, he decided that he would enter the contest again after the Jan. 6th 2021 insurrection.
Franken stated, “Having worked abroad and defended American life and worked so hard for this country, I felt that things that you do are more important as time gets shorter.” “I cannot think of anything more important than to contribute my expertise to preserve democracy in this nation, as I saw it under threat.
Al Simon is voting for Franken. Simon was there to witness Franken answer questions about foreign policy during an event in Des Moines last Wednesday. He believes Franken is more equipped to defeat Grassley.
Simon stated, “I think Grassley has been there too long.” “I’ve been in military so Franken is an admiral to me.”
However, Democrats have lost much ground in Iowa in the past decade, particularly in rural Iowa.
Glenn Hurst is the third candidate. He’s a doctor and a city council member from a small Iowa town. He is running as a progressive candidate and makes the case that his party should stop elevating moderates for statewide office.
Hurst paraphrasing Albert Einstein, said that “if you keep doing the exact same thing over and again, and expecting different results, then that’s insane.” I think we have to do something else. We’ll have the same results otherwise.”
Franken and Finkenauer both believe that Democrats have struggled in rural Iowa because many Iowans are connected to right-wing echo chambers. Both candidates were running for 2020. They both claim that the information environment was worsened by the new pandemic and Democrats weren’t campaigning as Republicans.
Finkenauer stated that they didn’t know how to respond because they were in the middle of a pandemic. “We didn’t know if we could go door-to-door [and] what was safe and what wasn’t. People spent a lot time on Facebook in the interim. The misinformation was thick.”
Local activists such as Dan Callahan, who is the chair of the Democratic Party in rural Buchanan County this year, are urging Iowans to get involved in politics in person.
Callahan stated that “these people are energized” during a Buchanan County fundraiser held in April. During the event, candidates spoke to dozens upon supporters. “They will come to the meetings and donate money, volunteer, make phone calls [and] knock the doors, which was not allowed last time.”
Although Democrats’ playbook feels more business-as usual, the winner of the primary will likely face a difficult race in November.
Grassley faces little opposition in the GOP primaries and is running for his eighth term as U.S. Senator to represent a state where Republicans have strengthened their grip in recent elections.
