Republican Katie Whittington is getting some help from a white nationalist former congressman in the special election to replace Sen. Chris Cournoyer’s District 35 seat. But Whittington is erasing that support from her Facebook.
Before January ends, there will be a special election over in Clinton County to fill a vacant state Senate seat. And as of this week, we have our candidates. One of whom, Republican Katie Elizabeth Whittington, is getting a hand from a former Iowa Congressman.
Iowa Starting Line obtained a screenshot of a “MAGA MEETUP” scheduled for this Friday posted to Whittington’s campaign Facebook page. Among the special guests promoted in the post are former Iowa legislator Brad Sherman and former Iowa Congressman Steve King.
Whittington did not return calls for comment about the post, which was on the page Tuesday, but had been removed from the Facebook page. The event now appears to have been canceled.
A troubled reign: King’s defense of white nationalism and history of antisemitic remarks
Steve King was in power for decades in northwest Iowa. Elected in 2002, he developed a reputation as an anti-immigration hardliner, known for controversial statements. But things escalated towards the end of his career.
There was, of course, his appearance on a show hosted by neo-Nazi website, the Daily Stormer, where he praised “well thought-out ideas” about the “JQ,” an abbreviation for the “Jewish Question.” There was also his visit with the far-right Austrian Freedom Party, during which he said that “Western civilization is on the decline.”
In 2018, The Weekly Standard reported on a rally appearance where, when speaking about jalapeno peppers, King referred to immigrants as “dirt.”
“I guess I’m going to have to go and get some dirt from Mexico to grow the next batch,” he said. “Trust me, it’s already on its way.”
That year, Democrat J.D. Scholten came within three points of beating him in Iowa’s reddest congressional district.
The final nail in King’s Congressional coffin came out of a 2019 interview he did with the New York Times where he decided to quibble with the reporter about when the terms “white nationalist” and “white supremacist” became offensive.
King was stripped of his House committee assignment and influential Christian conservative Bob Vander Plaats, a former supporter, threw his weight behind King’s primary challenger, then-state Sen. Randy Feenstra. In 2020, Republican primary voters booted King from his seat.
After his defenestration, King has been quiet. Outside of a lawsuit, he’s been relegated to being an X reply guy. But clearly he’s still interested in supporting candidates like Wittington.
School Board President Mike Zimmer runs as a Democrat
Mike Zimmer, 64, is the president of Central DeWitt School Board and owner of Mike Zimmer Construction. A longtime fixture in local education and business circles, Zimmer brings community leadership experience to his campaign. As school board president and a small business owner, he said in his campaign announcement that he would focus on promoting public education and the economic success of middle-class families.
“It’s not enough for families to just get by—we need to make sure they can truly get ahead. That’s the kind of future I’ll be fighting for in the Senate,” Zimmer said in a statement.
Iowa Senate Democrats view the special election as an opportunity to send a message about their priorities. In a statement, they characterized the race as “a pivotal moment for Eastern Iowa” and a chance for voters to “demand bold leadership and real solutions to move Iowa forward,” particularly on issues of education funding and economic opportunities.
What you need to know about Senate District 35’s Special Election
Senate District 35 was represented by Republican state Sen. Chris Cournoyer of LeClaire before Gov. Kim Reynolds selected her as the state’s new number two. Reynolds announced a January 28 election to fill the vacancy, setting in motion a new possibility for Democrats as they try to build a future after a difficult election last November.
Senate District 35 stretches across three Mississippi River counties. In Clinton County, it includes Clinton, DeWitt, Camanche, and Wheatland. The district has a southern square of Jackson County that includes Maquoketa. It also has the northwestern section of Scott County including Princeton.
In November, President-elect Trump carried the district by 21 points. US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks won it by 9 points. And back in 2022, Cournoyer carried it with 61% of the vote. This all suggests strong headwinds for Republicans.
But campaigns have less than a month to organize. And special elections tend to have low turnout since they occur outside the normal November election period. The condensed, off-calendar timing makes the special election unpredictable.
Early voting typically starts 20 days before Election Day, which would be around January 8. However, the deadline for candidates to file wasn’t until January 14. Early voting via absentee ballots will not begin until the ballots are printed by the auditors’ offices.
Eligible voters submitted enough signatures to require satellite voting locations in Dewitt and in Scott County.
Polling places will be open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m on Election Day, Jan. 28.
For more information, contact your county auditor.
