Iowa Rep. Todd Taylor to seek state Senate seat in 2018

DES MOINES - Democratic state Rep. Todd Taylor announced Wednesday he plans to seek election in 2018 to fill a state senate seat being vacated by his friend, Sen. Wally Horn, after more than 40 years.

'I think I have a lot to offer the voters of the district, said Taylor, 50, of Cedar Rapids. 'I've been interested in running for the seat, but Wally is a friend and I never was going to run against him.”

Horn, who is in his 10th term representing Senate District 35 - which covers southwest Linn County, including part of Cedar Rapids, Fairfax, Covington and East Walford - is planning to retire after his current term expires. He is the longest-serving member of the Iowa Legislature.

Taylor was elected to begin serving in the Iowa House of Representatives in 1995. He is the ranking member on the Justice Systems Appropriations Subcommittee and serves on the Appropriations, Labor and State Government committees.

He serves House District 70, which includes a portion of Cedar Rapids and overlaps with part of Senate District 35.

A union field representative for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees - or AFSCME - Taylor is the first person to announce a bid for the Senate District 35 seat. He expects others may be interested. The filing deadline is a year from now and if there is a primary it would be in June 2018.

Taylor grew up in the district, attending Jefferson High School, where he graduated in 1984. He earned bachelor's degrees from Graceland University and the University of Iowa in English and political science, respectively.

Taylor and his wife, Kim, have two children.

Horn, who joined the Senate after five terms in the House, served as Senate Majority Leader from 1992 to 1996. In 1995, President Bill Clinton accepted his invitation to address the Iowa Legislature, the first time a president has spoken in the Senate Chamber.

l Comments: (319) 398-8375; james.lynch@thegazette.com