Penny Vossler is the Democratic candidate in Iowa House district 48.

A letter to the Republican Party of Iowa:

What were you thinking? I received a mailer last week calling me “too liberal” (which is not quite the insult you think it is) and containing ridiculous lies – the same lies being told about many Democrat candidates across the nation – and vague statements with no details.

Supposedly I support new voting laws which open Iowa elections up to fraud. What are these laws, and in what way do they open our elections up to fraud?

Taking a perfectly acceptable picture of me and darkening it to make me appear scary, and following with inaccurate, vague statements seeking to frighten voters is petty and desperate. Apparently you have a playbook without integrity.

You might consider this tactic “business as usual,” but it isn’t acceptable in the world of real people like me. I’m taking it personally, and I want an apology and a retraction.

The first statement on the flyer, “Penny Vossler supports teaching kids as young as five Critical Race Theory,” is nothing short of moronic. I didn’t know what Critical Race Theory was when I first heard the term in the last year or two, so I googled it. I discovered that it is a college-level course mainly taught in law school or graduate school. I’ve seen some bright 5-year-olds in my years as a teacher, but not once have I suggested one was ready for law school. At the risk of being repetitive – moronic.

I understand why you would make up positions for me. Using my actual positions wouldn’t do your candidate (the one you do not name or promote in the flyer) any favors as most people in Iowa agree with my stances.

• Women and their doctors can be trusted to make health care decisions without your intervention. Check.
• Our voting system has been secure and well-managed and was not improved in any way by shortening the time frame for voting. Check. You’ve only made it less convenient which, I might point out, should not be in the job description of a legislator.
• Funding our schools with increases below the rate of inflation (as you have done for many years) is causing schools to close. Those that remain open to struggle to provide the quality education our children deserve. Check. Give the kids a fighting chance!

Each of these real positions are what sets me apart from your candidate. Again, I understand why you didn’t want to use the truth.

And I don’t know who wrote the piece of garbage I received, but I do know who paid to print and distribute it. Thus my letter to you, Republican Party of Iowa. I’ll be waiting for that apology.

With utmost sincerity,

Penny Vossler

In addition to being a candidate for the Iowa House, Penny Vossler is is the GIS Coordinator for Boone County, tasked with managing their Beacon website, creating maps and APPs, training and tech support for GIS map users and field data collection, 911 addressing and data generation, and online permitting as well as providing backup for the IT director when he is offsite.

Editor’s note: Iowa House district 48 covers Boone County and a small area in Story County.

Bleeding Heartland welcomes guest posts about the 2022 general election, including commentaries by Democratic or progressive candidates. Please reach out to Laura Belin if you are interested in writing.

Top photo of Penny Vossler provided by the author and published with permission.