Welcome to the New District

I live in the new Iowa House District 91. This is the fourth district in which our home has been located since we arrived.

When the Iowa legislature approved the map created by the Legislative Services Agency, I didn’t know what to think. I had not spent much time in Iowa County. I met some people there since redistricting, and now feel more welcome.

As a rural Johnson County Democrat, I’ve witnessed changing political views over the last 30 years. Some of the changes have been good, others, not so much. What I know is the filing deadline for federal and state offices is Friday, March 18, and the primary election is on June 7.

We have candidates.

In Iowa’s First Congressional District, University of Iowa professor and state representative Christina Bohannan filed as a Democrat. Incumbent Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Kyle Kuehl announced they are running as Republicans. Miller-Meeks should have no trouble dispatching Kuehl in the primary. She had a primary challenge before.

In House District 91, Democrat Elle Wyant and Republican Brad Sherman filed in the primary. There is another week before the deadline, but this seems likely to be the field. Republicans are better organized in rural parts of the state, so even though Sherman is unknown to most voters near me, he will have strong support throughout the district.

In Senate District 46, which includes House District 91, Republican state senator Dawn Driscoll filed in the primary, and Democratic state senator Kevin Kinney announced his candidacy for re-election yet hasn’t filed. Both are current state senators thrown together in the new district by the redistricting process.

In district 91, the Secretary of State shows voter registrations pretty evenly split: R = 5,836; D = 5,241; NP = 5,429; Other = 160. Assuming most registered Rs and Ds vote with their party, the district appears to be Republican advantage, although it could be a close race.

The next step is to wait until the filing deadline and see who else might be running. If you want to follow along, the link is here. It’s updated daily at the end of business.