The filing period for candidates running for office has now come and gone. We have officially moved into “primary season.” And, after redistricting has forced a few incumbents to run against each other, these are pivotal primary races.
While there are many eyes undoubtedly looking forward to what happens in November’s general election, June’s primary elections are critical — especially in the Iowa House. What happens in a handful of these races will go a long way in determining whether the House remains relatively moderate or shifts to a more conservative caucus.
Who knows? It could also lead to new leadership in the Iowa House.
There are at least a half-dozen races that are top of mind in this discussion. We will highlight those in short order. We will also do a survey with each Republican running. If they choose not to respond, that will be graded just as harshly as if they responded with less-than-conservative positions.
The time for blindly electing people and trusting them to do the right thing has come and gone. It is now time to trust, but verify.
And yes, there is some danger in that some of them may say the right things to get elected, and then do the opposite once in office.
Thankfully, there are voting records for a number of these incumbents running in opposed primaries.
No basketball coach worth his salt is going to skip tryouts and just coach with the players someone else picks. It is imperative conservative Iowans do their homework prior to the June primary elections and select the right Republicans to be on the general election ballot in November.
Not only will these primaries go a long way in charting the path for the next two years, they will dictate how conservative of a direction the state may go for the next decade.
It’s important Iowa Republican primary voters don’t screw it up.
