Wednesday, March 6, 2013
A Republican winning an election in Johnson County, Iowa? Clearly there must be some mistake.
With an electorate that swings more than two-to-one for Democrats, Johnson County, also known as the People's Republic of Johnson County, is known across Iowa for its liberal leanings. A group of University of Iowa college students hold a "conservative coming out week" each year with a wink towards how hard it is to be a Republican here. That is why last night's victory by Republican candidate John Etheredge over Democratic candidate Terry Dahms 3,102 to 2,974 in a low turnout special election for a Johnson County Supervisor seat is an historic moment. There hasn't been a Republican to win a seat on the Johnson County Board of Supervisors since rock and roll and Kennedy-Nixon and free love were dominating the national consciousness. Ronald…
Sunday, February 3, 2013
A cultural war is taking place within the Republican Party. In Iowa, where gay marriage opponents and social conservatives Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee have come out winners in the first-in-the-nation caucus, the conversation is critically important.
The first article in a two-part series. Read Part 2, Fight Against Gay Marriage? Not if Iowa GOP Wants Young Voters, on Iowa City Patch. __________ Troubled by polling data that shows traditional positions on issues like same-sex marriage are costing elections, the Republican Party is going through what its leaders politely call a period of introspection. More brutally, it's a question of whether the GOP can hold its nose and keep quiet on same-sex marriage and other social issues in order to welcome in a new group of young voters whose priorities center more on fiscal values than family values. The conversation is critically important – and difficult – in Iowa, where the results of first-in-the-nation caucuses and the Straw Poll leading …
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Republicans across the state weighed in on Saturday's Des Moines GOP debate.
At the Iowa GOP debate in Des Moines on Saturday, there were no losers, and Gingrich, Santorum and Romney did well, Republicans leaders across Iowa told Patch. Patch editors spoke with a mix of party leaders and everyday voters after the debate. University of Iowa political science professor Tim Hagle said candidates usually stand more to lose than to gain with debates, and, given that, no one seemed to lose big. This was especially important for Gingrich. As the current front-runner, he was the most scrutinized, and Hagle said he did fairly well. He specifically commended Gingrich for diffusing the fidelity issue. "It didn't get worse for Gingrich, and that was the best he could hope for," Hagle said. He added that Romney's performance …
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Dogged by personal baggage, could Newt Gingrich's presidential aspirations be resurrected by, of all people, Iowa's evangelical Christians?
Newt Gingrich’s surprise performance in the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition presidential forum Oct. 23, when he received greater applause than candidates with arguably more appeal with influential evangelical Christians, may be breathing life into a presidential campaign that many Republicans had left for dead. Former state Republican chairman Mike Mahaffey said support by religious conservatives of a candidate whose “life is a soap opera” is an unexpected sign of the times. Iowa Republicans have thrown their support behind several presidential hopefuls this year, only to then turn fickle. Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann won the Ames Straw Poll in August, with Rep. Ron Paul finishing second. Then Texas Gov. Rick Perry jumped into…
Maria Houser Conzemius
9:02 am on Saturday, May 11, 2013
maxine, John Etheredge won and Terry Dahms (D) lost because Dahms supported the new "Justice" Center and a new development of 78 houses on Newport Road. Etheredge (R) opposed both. Democrats, because they have too much power in Johnson County and keep incompetent county officials in office way too long, just because they're Democrats, were complacent. more ›