Kinney best for Senate seat

Residents of Senate District 39, which includes all of Keokuk County, most of Washington County and western and southern portions of Johnson County, have been given a difficult yet envious opportunity this November to select from two extremely qualified and sincere candidates.

Kevin Kinney, D-Oxford, is a 27-year veteran of the Johnson County Sheriff's Office and area farmer. Mike Moore, R-Washington, is an accountant and CEO of United Presbyterian Home in Washington. They are competing for a seat that was vacated by Sandra Greiner, R-Keota.

Both men have been elected to local city and school offices and bring a wealth of experience to the legislature in areas that are greatly underserved within the current makeup of lawmakers.

Kinney has significant knowledge in the area of human trafficking and sex crimes, has worked on numerous regional and national task forces and brings a firsthand perspective that would benefit all Iowans to the issues surrounding the sensitive topics.

Moore is an Iowa native who works directly with the elderly population. His unique perspective on the issues of aging would also benefit this state, which has a significant and growing elderly population.

Either candidate, given their thoughtful responses to our questions on topics ranging from education funding to water quality, would be a welcome change to the hyper-partisanship Greiner provided.

Given the large rural influence within this district, however, we believe constituents will be best served by Kevin Kinney, the candidate with the broadest agricultural knowledge base.

Kinney is a Farm Bureau member, belongs to the Johnson County Cattlemen's Association and Knights of Columbus. He is currently in his third term on the Clear Creek Amana School Board.

He's a lieutenant in the county sheriff's investigation division and received the Crime Victims Service Award for his investigation into a human trafficking ring. His work in the case led to the one of the first federal prosecutions of human trafficking in the U.S. and was the catalyst for state laws to combat the problem.

On his family's Century Farm near Oxford, Kinney raises cattle and grows corn and soybeans.

In our opinion, he will be one of the most well-rounded members of the Statehouse, and an excellent senator for constituents.

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