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Photo: Matt Blake and Bridget Montgomery celebrate their election to the Urbandale City Council. Democrats' efforts to turn the Des Moines metro's suburbs blue made a big leap forward last night with the election of many progressive candidates to city councils and...
A 33-year-old from Kansas City hitched a ride from a friend in St. Louis to stand in the cold and rain for more than four hours to meet Andrew Yang and experience Yangapalooza this past Friday. Yangapalooza featured several hours of live entertainment from Chef Zoot,...
This weekend, at presidential candidate events and forums throughout central Iowa, economic injustice against communities of color was a reoccurring theme — including discussion of homeownership disparities between black and brown families and their white neighbors....
Democrat J.D. Scholten is looking for supporters in the most unlikely of places — the smallest towns west of I-35. The 39-county congressional district Scholten is trying to win in Northwest Iowa has historically been the most conservative in the state. Residents of...
Hundreds of people and eight 2020 Democratic presidential candidates showed up to Iowa Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer's inaugural fish fry in Cedar Rapids Saturday afternoon to discuss issues important to unions. The Fish Fry was co-hosted by the IBEW PAC, the...
Before presidential candidates and their supporters filed into Wells Fargo Arena Friday night for the Iowa Democratic Party Liberty & Justice Celebration, rallies were held close by to pump up the crowd for the biggest event of the primary season. Starting Line...
Housing advocates’ push to bring attention to affordability struggles fell short of the Iowa spotlight as the top five polling candidates caused the cancellation of a scheduled affordable housing debate this Friday. Top-tier candidates Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren,...
Guest column from Dr. Jill Biden on Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Cancer has been a dark thread throughout my life. Both my parents died of it, and in 2015, Joe and I lost Beau to glioblastoma. Cancer is a brutal disease; it shatters our hearts and steals our joy....
Affordable housing advocates are making a case for municipal support to generally receptive local officials as a projected workforce housing crisis approaches Polk County. A newly released workforce housing study found Polk County will need to add 57,170 new housing...
The Midwest city mayor whose name no one could pronounce at the start of this year has come a long way in the Democratic primary. For a rising star in the party, vastly over-performing expectations in a crowded presidential field would easily be considered a victory...
Several mayoral candidates with extensive, but different backgrounds dealing with Des Moines’ rising shortage of affordable housing have proposed varied approaches to solve the issue ahead of Nov. 5 elections. Incumbent Mayor Frank Cownie, who has led the city through...
Pat Rynard interviews Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms about her decision to endorse Joe Biden for president, her trip to Iowa to join office-openings and campaign for him, and the issues she's working on as a big-city mayor. Paige Godden and Isabella...
We pulled away from downtown Des Moines at 7:45 a.m., heading to our first stop of the day, a town hall in Tama, Iowa. I needed some caffeine, and was praying Rob Sand did, too. Before we even got out of the city, we pulled up at a red light next to a QuikTrip. "Let's...
In the coming months, the Supreme Court will decide important questions that touch millions of Americans’ lives, and many people aren’t confident it will be for the better. But the concern goes beyond individuals. According to Gallup polling, as of 2019, only 38% of...
Sunday’s United Food and Commercial Workers forum in Altoona was supposed to be focused on labor issues. In the hall, with several hundred labor union members seated in the audience, it was. Outside, not so much. Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, who’s had a tough time...
A guest piece from a group of young Iowans on Cory Booker's gun stances. It would have been shocking if it wasn’t so predictable. A couple weeks ago, Donald Trump met with Wayne LaPierre and talked about the NRA — an organization that was a Russian asset during the...
While Iowa Republicans say they don't talk about the possibility of President Donald Trump being impeached because it’s not what Iowans want to talk about, over 80 people packed into the Waukee Community Center Thursday night to hear Democratic Representative Cindy...
Affordable housing lies in the underpinnings of Cory Booker’s presidential run. The 2020 candidate’s campaign said the issue is integral to his purpose as a public servant. A housing rights attorney before running for public office, the New Jersey senator’s stump...
I'm supporting Chelsea Chism-Vargas for Des Moines City Council, and the reason why is a lot different than my usual line of thinking. In the past, I’ve been perfectly candid about my disappointment with several elected officials in the Des Moines area, including my...
Presidential candidate Michael Bennet today joined the slate of 2020 democratic hopefuls with detailed housing plans. The Colorado Senator’s plan looks to build more affordable housing near good jobs, help middle-class families rent or purchase a home and reform...
Today, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg is releasing a drug-pricing policy to bring down prescription costs and protect investment in developing new, life-saving drugs. It specifically targets out-of-pocket costs and looks to reign in the abuses of big pharmaceutical...
Des Moines is a great place to live; it’s growing fast, it's diverse and rapidly getting the attention of young Latinx candidates running for office. With local elections slated for Nov. 5, we interviewed two Latinas running for seats on the Des Moines City Council:...
Following his rise in national and Iowa polling, Andrew Yang made an appearance in Northwest Iowa with the pitch he’s been making all summer. Soon, machines and artificial intelligence will be doing the jobs currently held by the majority of Americans, Yang argued. To...
Affordable housing has an unofficial figurehead as the national crisis makes its debut as a major issue on the presidential campaign trail this cycle. Julián Castro, the former mayor of San Antonio, Texas, served as the Housing and Urban Development Secretary for the...
On the stump, Mayor Pete Buttigieg frequently mentions how he owes his marriage to a single vote on the Supreme Court. He’s not alone. For many Americans, decisions made by the Supreme Court have profound impacts on their personal lives. But, increasingly, people have...
Consistency can rise up and snare political leaders if they are not careful. A recent example is Gov. Kim Reynolds, who is now squirming after questions were raised over whether she favors local or state control. The question came up this summer when Madison County...
A key to any successful Iowa Caucus campaign is having a broad base of support distributed throughout the state's 99 counties, rather than pockets of strong support here and there. It's particularly important here because of the way delegates are apportioned -- you...
Of the many voters Starting Line has spoken to about Pete Buttigieg around Iowa, the common sentiment they all share is that they believe he's trustworthy. In his own words, Buttigieg said he wanted to demonstrate his commitment to openness and authenticity. So, from...
Democrats' latest entrant in the race to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst today rolled out his first list of Iowa endorsements. Michael Franken, a retired Navy admiral from Northwest Iowa, spent the bulk of his military career traveling the world and anchored in...
Iowans felt near record-breaking heat this summer, raising concerns the high temperatures may be lethal as well as uncomfortable. Reports indicate premature deaths in the Midwest will increase more than other parts of the country due to extreme summertime...
