Campaign Almanac: Axne, Nunn among planned Soapbox speakers at State Fair

More than two dozen candidates for office in Iowa are scheduled to speak at the upcoming Iowa State Fair at the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox, according to the paper’s website.

The event will be held throughout the fair along the Grand Concourse in front of the Horner Service Center, according to the Register. Each candidate will have 20 minutes to address the crowd.

Those scheduled to speak at the Soapbox include U.S. Senate candidate Mike Franken, gubernatorial candidates Deidre DeJear and Rick Stewart, and congressional candidates Zach Nunn, Cindy Axne, Christina Bohannan, Liz Mathis, and Ryan Melton.

Candidates for state office scheduled to speak include Brenna Bird, Tom Miller, Michael Fitzgerald, Rob Sand, Todd Halbur, Joel Miller, and John Norwood.

The list of speakers is fluid and is updated regularly. The full schedule can be found at desmoinesregister.com.

No potential candidates for president in 2024 were scheduled to speak at the Soapbox as of Monday afternoon. Republican former Vice President Mike Pence plans to attend the Iowa State Fair, according to Politico.

BOOKER, SENATORS ENDORSE FRANKEN: Six Democratic members of Congress, including five U.S. senators, have endorsed Mike Franken, the Democratic candidate in Iowa’s U.S. Senate campaign, Franken’s campaign announced.

The endorsements come from U.S. Sens. Cory Booker, of New Jersey; Tim Kaine, of Virginia; Mark Kelly, of Arizona; Tina Smith, of Minnesota; and Martin Heinrich, of New Mexico. The batch of congressional endorsements also includes U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va.

Franken is challenging longtime incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley.

Gazette Des Moines Bureau