Staff Reports
The Iowa Democratic Party is in a real pickle. After a disastrous 2020 presidential caucuses and losing its first-in-the-nation status in the Democratic primary schedule, the party is now reeling from multiple losses to Republicans. Ouch!
Iowa Democrats are at a "low point" in the wake of their disastrous 2020 presidential caucuses, the loss of their first-in-the-nation caucuses in the Democratic primary schedule, and multiple losses to Republicans at the ballot box.https://t.co/CetnP7teZJ
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) August 11, 2023
To add salt to the wound, the Democratic National Committee approved President Joe Biden’s recommendation to put South Carolina ahead of Iowa in the primary calendar next year. That’s like getting kicked while you’re down. With all four of Iowa’s congressional seats now held by Republicans after the 2022 midterms, the Iowa Democrats are definitely feeling the heat.
Former Rep. Dave Loebsack, a Democrat who retired in 2020, summed it up nicely: “There’s no question that Democrats are at a low point in Iowa.” Even recruiting candidates to run is proving to be a challenge when you’re so far behind. It’s a tough pill to swallow.
In the past, Iowa Democrats had some success, holding three of the state’s four congressional seats and three of the six statewide offices. But things took a turn for the worse in 2022. Republicans dominated the elections, gaining supermajority control in both chambers of the statehouse, and two of the three statewide elected Democrats lost their seats. Yikes!
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Iowa Democrats are searching for a way to bounce back. The new chairwoman of the state’s Democratic Party, Rita Hart, who lost her own race to a Republican, believes the party needs to refocus on local issues and connect with fellow Iowans. It’s all about getting back to the grassroots, folks!
But let’s face it, Iowa Democrats have an uphill battle ahead. Former President Donald Trump has a strong following among Iowa’s white, rural voters, and the Democrats’ messaging has been lackluster at best. And losing their prized first-place status in the primary schedule after the debacle of the 2020 caucuses was a gut punch they’re still recovering from.
Now, they’re aiming to recruit centrist politicians who can appeal to independent voters. State Rep. J.D. Scholten thinks it’s time to focus on winning elections and getting Democrats to actually show up and vote, rather than relying on some big national entity to save the day. Good luck with that, Iowa Democrats!
With a popular Republican governor and a dominant state GOP, the road to regaining power won’t be easy for the Iowa Democrats. It’s going to take more than a Hail Mary pass to turn things around. But hey, anything is possible in politics, right? We’ll see if they can find a way to climb that mountain.
