Same candidates, different race in Iowa's 1st District

CEDAR RAPIDS — At first glance, the U.S. House 1st District Democratic primary race looks like a rematch or a runoff.

The June 7 primary in the 20-county northeast Iowa district that includes Cedar Rapids, Waterloo-Cedar Falls, Dubuque and Marshalltown features the top two vote-getters from the 2014 when Pat Murphy topped Monica Vernon 36 percent to 23 percent in a five-person field.

However, even if the names and issues are familiar, the candidates say it's a new ballgame with fewer players on a different playing field.

'Having five candidates was confusing,' said Vernon, a former Cedar Rapids business owner who served eight years on the city council.

'It's more clear with just two people and easier to get to the differences,' said Murphy, who served 24 years in the Iowa House, including two terms as speaker.

However, he added, a five-way race made it harder for any candidate to go negative because 'going negative toward one candidate didn't mean those votes would flow to the person leveling the attack.'

That hasn't been a problem this year. Both candidate have gone on the offensive.

Murphy questions Vernon's commitment to the party because she was a Republican until 2009.

'I was reluctant to bring it up,' he said, but after Emily's List and Vernon questioned his commitment to a woman's right to an abortion 'I decided I had to talk about her being a Republican.'

Vernon and others question his commitment to Democrats' pro-choice principles, pointing out that he helped start a Dubuque County pro-life organization and in the past has received a 100 percent rating from Iowa Right to Life.

Many of their differences are nuanced. For example, Murphy would eliminate the cap on Social Security payroll taxes. Now, the tax is paid on the first $118,000 of income. That means that Donald Trump hits the cap on Jan. 1, Murphy said, while middle class Iowans are paying that tax all year.

Vernon would maintain the tax on the first $118,000 of income, but apply the payroll tax on income over $250,000 so the wealthy would pay more.

Both want to raise the $7.25-an-hour minimum wage. Murphy would go to $15 immediately while Vernon would get there incrementally in an attempt to avoid job loss.

They agree the deciding factor for primary voters probably won't be any one issue, but which candidate is likely to do the better job of representing the district.

'I can speak for myself,' Murphy said. 'I have a proven record of being willing to work with Republicans to pass good legislation, but not to compromise on principle.'

'The question is 'Who do you think will best represent you?'' he said. 'If you are a middle class, working class voter, I'll have a pretty good shot of getting your vote.'

Vernon believes voters want to know 'who is showing me the future.'

'They want to know what it can be and who has the ability to make that happen,' she said. 'Who's talking about tomorrow?'

Members of the U.S. House serve two-year terms and are paid $174,000 a year.

Candidates at a glance

Name: Monica Vernon

Age: 58

Address: Cedar Rapids

Professional background: former owner of Vernon Research Group; former adjunct faculty member at John Pappajohn School of Entrepreneurial Excellence at the University of Iowa

Political Experience: Cedar Rapids City Council member and mayor pro tem, 2008-015

Education: BA and MBA, University of Iowa

Community Service: Served on many local boards and commissions, led effort to build the Madge Phillips Center, the first homeless shelter for women and children in Cedar Rapids.

Family: Husband Bill, three daughters

Website: www.MonicaVernonforCongress.com

Quote: 'It's time we build an economy that works for everyone and give hardworking families the fair shot they deserve. I'll stand up to Tea Party Republicans' attempts to cut Social Security and Medicare. Our seniors have paid into it with every paycheck, they've earned it, and in Washington I'll make sure we protect it. I'm honored to be supported in this race by Iowa's labor and strong progressives like Christie Vilsack and Attorney General Tom Miller, and I'd be honored to work for you in Washington.'

Name: Pat Murphy

Age: 56

Address: Dubuque

Professional: Mental health tech at Mercy Hospital; quality assurance analyst and documentation specialist at CyCare; adjunct faculty at NICC.

Political Experience: Iowa House 1989-2014, including four years as minority leader and four years as Speaker

Education: Bachelor's in communications with minor in political science, history, Loras College.

Community Service: Dubuque Area Labor Harvest volunteer; 2016 Dubuque Eagles Eyes on the Future Committee Citizen of the Year, hosts children from Hillcrest Family Services for Christmas dinner.

Family: Wife Teri, four children

Website: www.patmurphyforcongress.com

Quote: 'I am a lifelong Democrat who has spent my life fighting for the working class. I raised the minimum wage, expanded preschool for 4-year-olds, expanded health care for women and children and expanded civil rights for the LGBT community. I am proud to be a Democrat and I will be for the rest of my life.'