The Des Moines Register announced today that Kathie Obradovich will be the paper’s next political columnist.

Obradovich, 44, has been the Register’s political editor since 2003, and she was a state government reporter and statehouse bureau chief before that.

Notably, though Obradovich’s CV certainly qualifies her for the new title, this announcement should also help her employer save some cash. The Register, which has been forced to trim its budget by struggling parent company Gannett Co., has likely avoided the need to hire any additional (high-profile) staff.

Obradovich replaces longtime columnist David Yepsen, who was a fixture of Iowa’s political landscape for decades before he left earlier this year to take a job at Southern Illinois University.

In another possible sign of cutbacks, a press release notes that the new Obradovich column will be found in the paper “every week,” which sounds to me like “once per week.” When Yepsen was political columnist, his work was published several times per week.

The paper’s press release appears below:

The Des Moines Register today announces Kathie Obradovich as the new political columnist.

Generations of Iowans have trusted the Register’s political commentary to help set the agenda, define issues and hold public officials accountable. For decades, presidential candidates have courted the Register’s attention and national reporters have sought its tips and insight into candidates’ characters and qualifications. Obradovich will not only carry on this tradition but add her own unique voice. “My passion is helping Iowans to engage with their government to make a difference,” said Obradovich, political columnist for The Des Moines Register.

Obradovich has served since 2003 as the Register’s political editor, directing coverage of Iowa’s first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses, the Iowa Statehouse and Congress. She has been the lead editor of the award-winning Iowa Poll, developing questionnaires and coordinating reporting of the results.

Obradovich has covered Iowa government and politics for over 20 years, including a decade as a reporter and bureau chief at the Iowa Statehouse. She’s an Iowa native and Iowa State University graduate, with strong family roots in the state.

“Kathie earned this role by covering politics and government in Iowa for 20 years. She has shaped the coverage of elections, Iowa Caucuses and legislative sessions, sometimes under her own byline and sometimes behind the scenes. Born and raised in Iowa and with those years of perspective, she is uniquely suited to carry on the responsibility of the four Des Moines Register political columnists who preceded her.” said Carolyn Washburn, Vice President and Editor of The Des Moines Register.

Obradovich’s first column will appear on Sunday, June 28. You can find her columns every week in The Des Moines Register[...]