by | May 30, 2013
The potential field of candidates for Iowa’s open U.S Senate seat has further narrowed as current Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz has bowed out.
Tuesday he took to twitter to make the announcement and also sent an exclusive statement to The Iowa Republican.com–who have made a habit lately of further diminishing the Des Moines Register by breaking stories. The statement reads as follows:
Over the past few weeks I have been truly humbled by the encouragement I have received from Iowans to run for the U.S. Senate.
After many conversations with my family and friends about the U.S. Senate race, I keep coming back to the fact that I love serving Iowans as their Secretary of State.
In my first two years as Secretary of State we have worked to increase voter participation with our “Honor a Veteran†program and our partnership with Rock the Vote to encourage young people to vote through Rock Iowa. We have made it easier to start a business in Iowa by streamlining the filing process, and we used technology to make voting easier by creating apps that allow voters to find their polling place and track their absentee ballots right from their cell phones. We have also created an electronic poll book, “Express Voterâ€, to make voting easier on Election Day.
While I am proud of our achievements, there is more to accomplish. I will continue working to improve the business climate in Iowa and fighting for integrity in our elections. This is why I am going to run for re-election as Iowa’s Secretary of State.
Schultz would certainly have been a serious candidate and his decision to sit this out surprised many.  He flew out to Washington D.C a few weeks ago for meetings, and I highly doubt they told him anything overly negative. The notion that Bruce Braley is an overwhelming favorite in the general is flat-out an illusion–he can be beat and I’m confident Schultz heard this in D.C.
As his statement suggests, a major factor was you get the sense he truly does–for now– love being Secretary of State. Having said that, I can’t help but think if the calendar had been kinder and he wouldn’t of had to give up his current job to put his name on a ballot–he would have done so.
Republicans will see Schultz plenty in the future, and the last hidden factor to consider is this–we have another Senate seat in the state; right now it’s held by someone as old as the Republic, and that election falls in a S.O.S off-year. Additionally the next few years can be served raising his profile when he wants to, speaking at Republican events, and building a wide donor base. I bet all this added up to “Schultz for Senate 2016” having a better sounding ring to it.
by | May 4, 2013
From this point forward the Republican quest to replace Tom Harkin just got more interesting. With King removed from the picture the next batch of announcements we get will be declarations and not withdrawals.
I was never one to think Republicans needed King in the race to win the seat, and in fact have been lukewarm on his chances. I truly believe that a relative newcomer on the scene has a better shot at shoring up the base while still pulling a majority of Independents–which in turn will bring victory.
Prediction wise, don’t be surprised if the list of candidates who decide to run is very, very short. I would not be shocked if only 2 names of the 6 or so being thrown around run in the end…and I swear don’t rule out Bob Vander Plaats.
Below is Steve King’s full statement:
Dear Friends,
I want to thank all of my friends, family, advisors and supporters who have put so much time, thought, prayer, and effort into helping me make a decision on whether to run for the United States Senate. I sincerely thank every potential candidate, all of whom graciously gave me room to decide. Probably no one in America, considering such an opportunity, enjoys as clear a path to the nomination. It is an extraordinary opportunity that will not be repeated in millions of lifetimes.
I have said from the beginning this decision requires “the head, the gut, and the heart†to line up together. I have done due diligence and evaluated the race from a statewide, objective perspective. I have talked with hundreds of supporters…and some detractors. I sincerely thank all of you who have helped in so many ways.
My analytical part, the head, tells me the race is winnable and must be won in 2014 or a generational opportunity could be lost. I have said a race for the Senate is “a slight up hill battleâ€. It is, but it’s “no hill for a climberâ€.
The question I am answering today is, “What is my duty?†I believe my duty is to utilize the honor of serving Iowans in Congress by maximizing my effectiveness. I owe it to all Iowans and Americans to give you my best effort and best judgment.
We have in front of us in Congress a series of potent issues which will redirect the destiny of our state and nation. Among them are a farm bill, ObamaCare, debt and deficit, immigration, and tax reform. If I step away from these responsibilities while campaigning in an effort to multiply leverage in the Senate, what becomes of our nation in the mean time?
This week, I made a simple device to put toothpaste back in the tube. But a device to put the Leftist genie back in the bottle is not so simple. The best tool we have now is the majority in the U.S. House which functions mostly to keep the Leftist genie in the bottle. I cannot, in good conscience, turn my back on the destiny decisions of Congress today in order to direct all my efforts to a Senate race for next year, while hoping to gain the leverage to put the genie back in the bottle in 2015.
The most timely and conclusive piece of advice I received crystallized my decision. A friend, whose 77th birthday is today, said to me, “I will support you whatever you decide to do. If you decide to run, don’t be a reluctant candidate.†If I said, “Yes†to a Senate race, I would be a reluctant candidate because of the reasons I’ve written above.
Accordingly, I will not be a candidate for the United States Senate in 2014. It is my intention to turn my efforts and energy with great vigor to the issues at hand. I anticipate being on the ballot for reelection to the U.S. House, Fourth District of Iowa. It is a challenging and rewarding job that I enjoy. My sincerest thanks to all involved.
by | May 2, 2013
It appears the allure of having your name on every fuel pump in Iowa has proved to be too much for Bill Northey to give up.
Today Mr. Northey officially removed himself from the potential candidate pool. Though many speculated, few insiders ever saw him making a run as probable. I have seen him speak at several political events and he seems like a genuinely nice guy.  Having said that, the perceived strength of his candidacy that many shared was somewhat surprising to me.  Though Bruce Braley is certainly beatable, it is going to take a bold candidate capable of stirring up some real passion to pull it off. I am not certain this would have been a strength for him, and I could be wrong but I am unconvinced he would have been able to switch a large number of Democrats involved in the Ag business.
The way I look at the map, a successful candidate on the Republican side is going to have to at least compete with Braley in the urban areas. If not, the margin of victory in the rural counties would have to be massive to overcome it–and likely not possible. Even though he has opted not to run, Mr. Northey is a class act and will be a valuable commodity on the trail for our eventual nominee.
As of right now the short list of remaining potential candidates is– Steve King, Matt Whitaker, Matt Schultz, Joni Ernst, and Rod Roberts.
Below is the Bill Northey statement released earlier today:
After talking with my family and thoughtful consideration, I have decided that I will not seek the nomination for our open U.S. Senate seat. I am humbled to have heard so many kind words from Iowans encouraging me to run. Our state and nation are facing great challenges and we need strong leaders in Washington, but we also need strong leaders here in Iowa. I feel at this time I can be more effective serving Iowans as Secretary of Agriculture rather than engaging in a Senate campaign.
Congressman Steve King has been a strong conservative leader in Washington and would serve our state well in the Senate. Should he decide to run, he would have my full support. If he decides against running, our state is fortunate to have many qualified and exciting candidates and I look forward to working with our party’s nominee to win this important election.
The potential field of candidates for Iowa’s open U.S Senate seat has further narrowed as current Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz has bowed out.
