Iowa Democrats pick Abby Finkenauer in 1st District to run against GOP's Rod Blum

Abby Finkenauer, a two-term state legislator from Dubuque, easily won the Democratic primary Tuesday in Iowa's 1st Congressional District.

She will oppose U.S. Rep. Rod Blum, a Republican, in a November general election race that is expected to draw national attention.

Finkenauer, 29, would be the youngest woman elected to Congress if she wins in November. Heading into the primary, she had raised the most money among the Democratic candidates — nearly $1.3 million — and had received more than a dozen Iowa union endorsements.

Iowa primary election: Full results, coverage from Election Day 2018

In May, Roll Call, a national race-handicapper, listed Blum as the most likely U.S. House member to lose in the November election. Blum's vulnerability explains why Democrats nationally have targeted Iowa's 1st Congressional District in their bid to regain control of the House.

Finkenauer defeated three other Democratic challengers to capture her party's nomination.

With all 416 precincts reporting, Finkenauer had 67 percent of the vote and was trailed by Thomas Heckroth of Cedar Falls, an ex-aide to former U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, who received 19 percent.

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Others receiving votes included Courtney Rowe of Cedar Rapids, an aerospace engineer, who got 8 percent of the votes, and George Ramsey of Marion, a retired U.S. Army first sergeant, who receive 6 percent.

“As I’ve said from day one, this is personal,” Finkenauer said in a prepared statement. “We started this campaign to stand up for families just like mine, who work hard and play by the rules but have the odds stacked against them.”

The more than 100 people gathered at the Smokestack bar in downtown Dubuque erupted in cheers and high fives with the news that Finkenauer was the frontrunner.

“We need younger people to run to get younger people interested in politics,”  said Joseph Freiburger, 26, of Dubuque. 

Blum, a conservative who supports President Donald Trump, was unopposed for the Republican Party nomination. He was first elected in 2014 and was re-elected in 2016.

“I am looking forward to a respectful race in which we can discuss the issues during 12 debates throughout the first district, beginning in July,” Blum said in a prepared statement.

The 1st District covers 20 counties in northeast Iowa and includes the cities of Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Marshalltown and Dubuque.

The district's voters are about 32 percent Democrats and 29 percent Republicans, with most of the rest listed as no party.

Trump carried the district in the 2016 election. However, President Barack Obama won it in 2008 and 2012, indicating the swing-district character of its voters.

Finkenauer said during the primary campaign that she can relate to 1st District voters as one of four children in a family where her father was a union pipefitter/welder and her mother worked for a school district.

Blum said prior to the primary that he has delivered on promises to voters that he would work to reignite the economy, "drain the swamp," and to serve his district, especially veterans, seniors, and those in the disabled community — who need the federal government’s help most.

He also said he has had a 98.4 percent voting attendance record and made time to meet in-person with more 12,330 1st District constituents, visit with over 58 businesses and 60 nonprofit organizations, and host tele-town halls with more than 37,000 participants from the 1st District.

The race this fall

Democrat Abby Finkenauer would be the youngest woman elected to Congress if she manages to beat Republican Rep. Rod Blum in November in northeast Iowa's 1st District.

Finkenauer, a state House member who was first elected at age 24, is now 29 years old.
Blum was first elected in 2014 and was re-elected, with 54 percent of the vote, two years ago. He has been supportive of President Donald Trump in his policy positions, most of which Finkenauer has opposed.

The district has about a third Republican registered voters, a third Democrats and a third voters with no party. That makes it one of the most-watched races in the country.
It may also be the most expensive congressional races in the state – Finkenauer has already raised more than $1.2 million, nearly matching Blum’s $1.5 million. But he has far more cash left in the bank for the race ahead, according to campaign finance numbers from mid-May.