The Sioux City Journal’s Bret Hayworth reports that Campbell’s formal campaign announcement was pushed back due to the weather and that Denklau has only sent out two press releases on issues since Dec. 1. Not the best start for two men facing such a steep uphill fight to unseat the four-term Republican lawmaker in the strongly conservative 5th District. King handily defeated Rob Hubler, a Navy veteran and retired Presbyterian minister from Council Bluffs, in 2008 by more than 20 percentage points.

From Hayworth’s political blog:

Whether Denklau or Campbell trip the trigger for Iowans living in the 32 congressional district counties remains to be seen. Certainly they have a huge uphill battle. In a time of tea parties and falling Democratic fortunes, King remains a popular politician in the district that skews heavily Republican.

The two latest victims reported lived in Floyd and Johnson counties. Both had risk factors that increased the chance of complications from the virus.

Among all H1N1 cases in Iowa, the most common risk factors for complications from the virus were immune-compromised (such as cancer), respiratory (such as asthma, and neuromuscular. In addition, more than 50 percent of the Iowans hospitalized were overweight or obese, which may be associated with medical conditions, such as diabetes, which increase the chance of complications.

According to health department officials, deaths in Iowa have mirrored the state population, with age groups and all major racial and ethnic groups being impacted. Nearly half of the deaths have occurred in adults between the ages of 25 and 49. Five of the deaths were among adults from age 50 to 64, while three deaths were among adults 18 to 24. In Iowa, there has only been one child death and one death for persons over the age of 64.

Two of the state’s fatalities were cases that had no underlying risk factors from medical complications.

Iowans who want more information about influenza surveillance in Iowa should visit the department’s Web site. The state also maintains a public 24-hour hotline for those with questions about the virus, 1-800-447-1985.