IA-SEN 2022: Grassley vs Franken

[NewYorkExpress]

Former Crawford County Supervisor Dave Muhlbauer becomes first Democrat to enter the race.

Former county official Dave Muhlbauer is entering the race to unseat Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), becoming the first Democrat to formally jump into the 2022 contest.

“I grew up a Democrat. My dad was a Democrat. My grandpa Louis was a Democrat,” Muhlbauer said in a video announcing his candidacy. “We are the old-school, farming, labor Democrats. We are for that middle class.”

“A lot of farmers that are 50s, 60s — they come to me: ‘Dave, I used to be a Democrat.’ And they just feel that Democrats are leaving the rural areas high and dry,” he added. “I think people are just fed up. They’re stretched thin.”


Muhlbauer previously served for four years on the Crawford County Board of Supervisors before losing his seat last year by a margin of fewer than 100 votes. His campaign announcement on Monday marks his first run for statewide office.

I'm not sure I like this jump to a Senate race for Muhlbauer. If I were him, I'd run against Randy Feenstra, or for a downballot statewide office like Secretary of State instead.

[NewYorkExpress]

Still a Lean R race, assuming Finkenauer wins the nomination.

The only thing that would change that is Grassley deciding to retire.

[NewYorkExpress]

This is wave insurance there hasn't been any polls on this this far

In case you haven't remarked, no Democrat has won a statewide race in IA since 2012 (when Obama was the last Democrat to win Iowa in a presidential election).

Tom Miller's and his 2018 election map say's high.

Tom Miller, Rob Sand etc. are also likely going to lose in 2022, and probably only won in 2018 because it was a D wave.

[NewYorkExpress]

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1447019145434963970

Honestly, this probably helps a hypothetical Trump 2024 campaign more than it helps Grassley.

[NewYorkExpress]

Former Representative Jim Leach endorses Franken and Christine Bohannan . Not only that, but he's apparently switching parties too.

Former eastern Iowa Republican Congressman Jim Leach is trying something new this election cycle — endorsing and voting for Democrats in Congress.

Leach represented Iowa in the U.S. House as a moderate Republican for 30 years until he lost reelection to former Rep. Dave Loebsack, a Democrat, in 2006.

He endorsed Barack Obama in 2008 and Joe Biden in 2020. But for the first time, he said he switched his party registration from R to D to vote in the 2022 June primary.

Leach, 79, said the switch was prompted by a Republican Party that he described as lurching to the right in its support for Donald Trump leading up to and after Jan. 6, and lying about the results of the 2020 election.

[NewYorkExpress]

The first thing McConnell and Schumer need to agree on is that Franken will not be seated if he wins.

We can't have a politician with sexual assault allegations in the Senate.