David Young wins 3rd District GOP nomination in stunning upset
David Young, a former chief of staff to U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, won a stunning upset victory Saturday to capture the Iowa Republican Party's nomination in what is expected to be a nationally watched race to succeed U.S. Rep. Tom Latham.
Young's win came on the fifth ballot at a convention of 3rd Congressional District delegates at Des Moines Christian School in Urbandale. The day had begun with six candidates vying for the nomination, but the final ballot came down to a decision between Young and state Sen. Brad Zaun of Urbandale.
Zaun had led on the first four ballots and had been in first place in a June 3 primary among six candidates, but he couldn't get enough votes from rural county delegates to secure the nomination. As the balloting proceeded and other candidates dropped out, Young's candidacy gained in strength.
"I am trusted, tried and true in my conservative thought," Young said. "I am asking for your vote."
The final ballot had Young with 276 delegate votes, or 55.5 percent, to Zaun's 221 votes, or 45.5 percent
Young will be opposed on the November general election ballot by former state Sen. Staci Appel of Ackworth, the Democratic party's nominee
Saturday's decision marks the end of a lengthy battle among the six Republican candidates, who had been vying for the party's nomination since Latham stunned fellow Republicans by announcing in December he wouldn't seek reelection and would leave after 20 years in Congress.
The convention was required under Iowa law after no candidate managed to win 35 percent of the vote in a district-wide primary on June 3.
Joe Grandanette , a physical education teacher from Des Moines was the first of six candidates dropped from the ballot because of a low vote count, while Robert Cramer, a bridge construction executive from Grimes, pulled out after the second ballot after it became clear he couldn't win.
Secretary of State Matt Schultze of Truro was dropped after the third ballot and threw his support to Young, and Monte Shaw, a renewable fuels executive from West Des Moines, was dropped after the fourth ballot.
The race is a priority for their national parties as Republicans seek to maintain their majority in the U.S. House of Representatives and as Democrats try to regain control. The 3rd District is considered a swing district with Republicans representing 34 percent of registered voters, Democrats representing 33 percent, and 33 percent citing no party.
The Rothenberg Political Report and the Cook Political Report – which monitor congressional races nationwide - both rate the Iowa 3rd District contest as a toss-up.
Democrats contend they have an advantage – at least financially – as the head-to-head matchup begins in earnest.
In reports filed on June 1 with the Federal Election Commission, none of the six Republicans who sought their party's nomination had more than $63,000 in cash , while Appel in mid-May reported $466,000 in cash and no debts.
Democrats will contend the Republican nominee has been pushed too far to the right to win the support of GOP activists. All of the Republican candidates have taken stances in support of gun rights, opposing legalized abortion and same-sex marriage, and for cutting taxes and federal spending.
Meanwhile, Republicans are already calling Appel , a supporter of abortion rights and same-sex marriage, an "ultra-liberal" who loves to spend taxpayer money and raise taxes.
Latham's announcement last December that he planned to leave Congress at the end of his term touched off a scramble within the Iowa GOP to succeed him that has left some analysts wondering if the party will be able to heal its divisions by the fall campaign. However, Republican leaders say they are optimistic about their chances up and down their ticket this fall and believe party unity will be maintained.
Meanwhile, Appel, who was defeated in 2010 after one term in the Iowa Senate, has been running for Congress since last July after initially wavering back and forth on the idea. Several other Democrats were mentioned as possible candidates– including state Sen. Matt McCoy of Des Moines and former Iowa First Lady Christie Vilsack - but none decided to enter the race. Her campaign has been endorsed by Emily's List, which works to get pro-choice Democratic women elected to office. Her supporters note that no woman has ever been elected to Congress from Iowa.
Outgoing Congressman Latham had remained neutral during the GOP's nominating contest. Latham had moved from Ames to Clive for the 2012 election, defeating Democratic Rep. Leonard Boswell after Iowa's delegation in the U.S. House shrunk from five to four members following redistricting forced by the 2010 census.
The last time Iowa Republicans had a nominating convention to select a candidate for Congress was in 2002, when Steve King, a Republican from northwest Iowa, won his party's nomination. He has since been elected to Congress six times and is currently representing Iowa's 4th District.