Former Iowa legislators continue political careers on local level

Iowa's political elevator apparently has a down button that some elected officials are using to return to the ground floor.

Traditionally, politicians have used local office as a springboard to bigger things. Take Mount Pleasant Democrat Tom Vilsack, who moved from mayor to the Iowa Senate to the governor's office to a short-lived presidential bid and finally to U.S. agriculture secretary.

However, in recent years there also has been a reverse trend of men and women serving in the Legislature and later pursuing government posts closer to home.

Recently, former Iowa House Speaker Ron Corbett joined the ranks of four ex-lawmakers gone local when he succeeded Kay Halloran - also an ex-state representative - as mayor of Cedar Rapids.

Other former Statehouse residents now serving as mayors include Bob Brunkhorst in Waverly, Bill Gluba in Davenport and Larry Murphy in Oelwein.

Even former Gov. Robert Ray served a short stint as interim mayor of Des Moines in 1997 when the post was temporarily vacated by the late Mayor Arthur Davis. It was later filled by Preston Daniels in a special election.

“For anybody that's served, you never quite get over that. If you get it in your blood, it stays there,” said Brent Siegrist, a former Iowa House speaker from Council Bluffs who now works for the Area Education Agencies but describes himself a “recovering politician.”

Siegrist indicated he would be interested in running for mayor of his hometown if and when longtime incumbent Tom Hanafan decides to step down as mayor of the southwest Iowa city.

“If you've been in politics, it doesn't leave your bloodstream very quickly. You still remain interested in it, and, particularly at the local level, the issues are very much right in front of you,” he said. “If you enjoy it the first time, why wouldn't you enjoy it there? There's part of you that feels you still have something to offer and it would be exciting.”

Perhaps the Capitol-to-City-Hall movement has been most pronounced in Linn County, where Paul Pate, a former state senator and secretary of state, started things when he held the Cedar Rapids mayoral office before Hallorhan and Corbett. Also, the late state Sen. Mary Lundby of Marion was eyeing a bid for a Linn County supervisor post before she succumbed to cancer last year.

At the county level, five former lawmakers currently serve as supervisors - Rick Larkin in Lee County, Dennis May in Worth County, Andy McKean in Jones County, Mike O'Brien in Boone County and Doug Shull in Warren County. Also, former Rep. Pat Gill is Woodbury County auditor.

The 2010 primary ballot has a current representative and a former senator running for county supervisor seats - Rep. Mark Kuhn, D-Charles City, in Floyd County and former state Sen. Frank Wood, D-Eldridge, in Scott County.

“It has a lot to do with where you're at in a particular time of your life,” said McKean, a former state senator from Anamosa. “In my case, I wanted to be back home for my kids' high school years, but yet I was still interested in public policy questions, and for me, it seemed to be a good move. Plus, it's nice to be able to be home every night.”

Serving at the local level gave McKean a new perspective on state mandates placed on local governments and the difference between making big-picture decisions in Des Moines and dealing with issues that affect people more directly and immediately.

“One thing that I discovered is that in many ways being a county supervisor is more challenging than being a state senator, because the people you say no to you're quite liable to see on the street the next day,” he said, “and the issues you're dealing with tend to be a little more direct and personal and people take them often to heart more than some of the broader statewide issues.”

Bill Peterson, longtime executive director of the Iowa State Association of Counties, said former legislators “find they can actually have quite a bit more influence as an individual on a three- or five-member board of supervisors. It's a lot easier to get things done if you don't have to convince 99 other people or 49 other people,” he said.