Stories

MARION — Citing the need for better leadership and a broader statewide vision for farmers, Fairfield dairy farmer Francis Thicke announced today that he would seek the Democratic nomination for Iowa secretary of agriculture.

With more news that the field of 2010 gubernatorial candidates is narrowing, it seems prudent to take a moment to review what next year’s race against Culver might look like.

Iowa Ag Secretary Bill Northey and state Auditor David Vaudt are downplaying speculation that they will seek the Republican gubernatorial nomination in 2010.
Both men have said previously that they are considering challenging Gov. Chet Culver next year. But in order to do so they would have to give up their current office, and most observers [...]

“Iowa’s investment in ethanol production has brought economic development to agriculture, and we need to protect that investment,” Thicke said. “However, it is time to reassess, and consider how future investments in renewable energy can be better targeted to profit farmers and better protect our natural resource base.”

In an interview with the Iowa Independent conducted Friday, Republican gubernatorial hopeful Bob Vander Plaats discusses how to balance the state budget, why he opposes the gas tax, the state’s response to last summer’s flooding and his third campaign for Iowa’s highest office.

Could the first major issue of the 2010 Republican gubernatorial primary be unfolding in the pages of the Iowa Independent?  As best we can tell, Jason Hancock’s just-published interview with Bob Vander Plaats marks the first time one serious contender for the GOP nomination directly criticized another in the context of the gubernatorial race, and [...]

The state’s $600 million budget shortfall creates “an urgency to reform government, to sharpen the saw, to get rid of the waste and really focus on our priorities,” GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bob Vander Plaats said in an interview with the Iowa Independent.

A face-off is brewing over an increase to Iowa’s fuel tax, but the divide is not breaking down along typical partisan lines.

State Rep. Rob Robers, R-Carroll, told the Sioux City Journal he is weighing a run for governor in 2010.
The five-term Republican said “converstations are taking place” about what his campaign team might look like and who is likely to support him. However, he does not have a timetable for making his decision.

No one is sure how vulnerable Gov. Chet Culver will be in 2010, when he will likely run for reelection, but this week, we have a better picture of which Republican political figures might challenge him.