Cornhole Champions #1 – Recounting the count

Iowa Democrats didn’t exactly get points on the board in 2024. But it’s not all bad news. Toss the bags with us as we get a temperature check on what a recount can—and more importantly, cannot—do.

I don’t have to tell you that 2024 was not a good year for Democrats. But it wasn’t all bad news. Iowans elected their first transgender person to the Iowa Legislature. They flipped a long-time Republican seat. And while Iowa’s 1st Congressional District still went for Republican US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, the results show organizing in Johnson and Scott counties is paying off.

On this episode of Cornhole Champions, host Zachary Oren Smith chats with Iowa Starting Line’s community editor Amie Rivers about the ugly, the bad, and the extent to which there was any good in the first place.

Cornhole Champions is a weekly podcast powered by Iowa Starting Line with music by Avery Mossman.

Links:

• 1st Story – Aime Wichtendahl of Hiawatha is the first transgender Iowan elected to the Iowa Legislature. And Democrat Matt Blake of Urbandale unseated longtime state Sen. Brad Zaun of Des Moines. (Iowa Starting Line)
• 2nd Story – There’s a growing trend of white supremacist flyers appearing in Iowa neighborhoods. (KWWL)
• 3rd Story – U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson said she is not interested in serving as House GOP conference chair following New York U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik’s expected departure to serve in President-elect Donald Trump’s 2024 administration. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)
• 4th Story – As we take stock of what happened in 2024 and prepare for the road ahead, the results in the 1st Congressional District show some interesting trends. Here are some key takeaways from Tuesday’s election.

Guest:

• Derek Muller is a professor at Notre Dame Law School.