In Iowa’s legislative trenches, my daughter fought for the future

Eight years ago, in the wake of Donald Trump’s first presidential victory, I wrote a column on how my daughters felt about Hillary Clinton’s defeat. Both had been hoping we would elect the first woman to the presidency.

“I’m worried about my whole future, but that’s cool,” said my older daughter, then a high school freshman already skilled in the ways of snark, the next morning.

After that column I caught some hell. One email writer called me a terrible parent for indoctrinating my daughters.

Of course, no one can indoctrinate my kids. They’re too smart. Pity the person who tries to tell them how to think, or vote.

On Tuesday, the kid who worried about her future was working to do something about it. She managed two Iowa House campaigns, seeking to hold two Democratic seats in Ankeny, a city north of Des Moines.

So, while my eyes were on many election results Tuesday night, my heart was in House Districts 41 and 42. My daughter was on the front lines. No one clicked “refresh” on results more times than I did.

She got a front-row seat to the best and worst of Iowa politics as she campaigned for District 41 Rep. Molly Buck and District 42 Rep. Heather Matson.

Between the two campaigns, the candidates and an army of volunteers knocked on 38,000 doors, some receiving multiple visits. My daughter knocked around 6,000 of those doors.

One guy threw the campaign literature back in her face. Another came to the door in a towel. There were dogs. She was stung by a wasp. Ah, the glamour of politics.

She loved her volunteers and they helped take care of her during the ceaseless work of a campaign. They brought her gift cards for food and provided kindness and small comforts. During the final week, she received a gift certificate for a massage.

She had great candidates and teammates. The effort they made was amazing.

Buck faced Ryan Weldon, a former Ankeny school board president elected to the board in 2019. He supported the conservative backlash against mask mandates. There also was a student-led drag show after school hours. The horror. But Weldon was swept off the board a year ago when progressive candidates struck back.

Weldon received a lot of ground support in the House race through independent expenditures by the ultrareligious conservative group The Family Leader.

Matson faced Heather Stephenson, who received considerable backing from Americans For Prosperity, a group that often lobbies for some of the worst bills floated by the Republican legislative majority.

Clearly, the Republican Party of Iowa wanted to unseat these Democrats. The party spent more than $133,000 on various forms of advertising to help Weldon from mid-September to the end of October. During the same period, the party delivered more than $370,000 in help for Stephenson.

Watching results was a long ride on a cruel roller coaster. At one point, with what looked like 10 of 10 precincts reporting, Buck appeared to have won by just 65 votes. But then, inexplicably, the numbers changed. In the final unofficial tally, Weldon won 10,700 to 10,564.

Matson fought off Stephenson, winning 9,103 to 8,953.

My daughter batted .500. We’re proud of her. Nothing to be ashamed of. It could have been worse.

Statewide, Democrats drowned in a red wave. Republicans added to their House and Senate majorities. The overreach of extreme laws is just fine with Iowans. The Iowa Poll’s shot of late optimism crumbled like fool’s gold.

But my daughter stayed here to fight the good fight. And I wouldn’t blame her if she left Iowa tomorrow and didn’t look back. But that would be the most heartbreaking election result of all.

(319) 398-8262; todd.dorman@thegazette.com