This morning Jon Neiderbach officially launched his candidacy in Iowa House district 43. The former Iowa legislative fiscal analyst, Des Moines School Board president, and Democratic nominee for state auditor in 2014 said he is running
because the current Representative from District 43 is financed by special interests and is more interested in advancing his political career than fighting inefficient and ineffective government. Residential property taxes have soared since he has been in office, and education funding has been inadequate.
My experience with the Iowa Legislature and in state and local government allow me to understand how bureaucracy and special interests resist change. I am a fiscal conservative committed to open and transparent government, and I will not be sidetracked by campaign money, other politicians, or building a political career.
Neiderbach’s key issues will be limits on campaign contributions, “accountable government” with no more tax increases or “corporate welfare,” investing more in K-12 education, and reducing student debt. His campaign is on the web here as well as on Facebook and on Twitter @neiderbach2016.
The full news release from Neiderbach is after the jump, along with a detailed map of the district covering Windsor Heights, Clive, and parts of West Des Moines. According to the latest figures from the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office, House district 43 contains 6,678 active registered Democrats, 7,454 Republicans, and 5,954 no-party voters.
Four-term Republican incumbent Chris Hagenow was recently chosen to be the new Iowa House majority leader. Challenging him will be an uphill battle, as Republicans will spare no expense to hold this seat. On the other hand, as Bleeding Heartland discussed here, this once-heavily Republican suburban district has been trending toward swing status. President Barack Obama won 50.6 percent of the vote in 2012 in the HD-43 precincts, while Mitt Romney won 48.3 percent. Joni Ernst beat Bruce Braley by only 2 percent in HD-43–a lot less than her statewide winning margin in the 2014 U.S. Senate race.
Hagenow narrowly won this House seat in 2008, by 93 votes. He had an easy re-election in 2010 but had to spend money on push-polls and negative tv ads to eke out a 23-vote margin over Susan Judkins in the last presidential election cycle.
Last month, Jennifer Konfrst became the first Democrat to launch a campaign in House district 43. The party establishment seems to favor Konfrst, who already has the official support of State Senator Janet Petersen and State Representative Jo Oldson. I’m happy to see two qualified, dedicated people ready to take on Hagenow. May Konfrst and Neiderbach work hard and fight fair as they seek Democratic votes across the district. Bleeding Heartland is unlikely to endorse in this primary.
September 16 press release:
Jon Neiderbach, a former school board president and budget analyst from Windsor Heights, today announced his candidacy to represent Iowa’s 43rd House District, which includes Windsor Heights and portions of West Des Moines and Clive.
“Voters I talk with are very frustrated, and I understand why. They say we are losing our democracy because big money has too much power over our elections and our politicians. They say taxes on our homes keep going up despite endless promises. They say the taxes we pay are wasted on corporate welfare and inefficient government. And they are especially upset about the attacks on the quality of Iowa’s education system and the high debt college students incur.
“I am running for State Representative because the current Representative from District 43 is financed by special interests and is more interested in advancing his political career than fighting inefficient and ineffective government. Residential property taxes have soared since he has been in office, and education funding has been inadequate.
“My experience with the Iowa Legislature and in state and local government allow me to understand how bureaucracy and special interests resist change. I am a fiscal conservative committed to open and transparent government, and I will not be sidetracked by campaign money, other politicians, or building a political career. I will be a State Representative who will represent the needs and interests of the voters of House District 43.”
Jon will be campaigning on four major issues:
Get Big Money Out of Politics: our democracy is being corrupted by big money. Politicians focus on pleasing large contributors, rigging the system against the needs of ordinary citizens. We need to limit the maximum amount of campaign contributions.
Accountable Government: we cannot afford any more tax increases. We need to measure results, and change or eliminate government programs that are not achieving their goals. Tax dollars should not be used for corporate welfare where some businesses win and others lose.
Restore Education as Iowa’s #1 Priority: Iowa needs a highly educated workforce, and that means investing in K-12 schools so that they are once again “First in the Nation”. We must ensure teacher pay attracts talented replacements for the upcoming wave of retirees.
Reduce Student Debt: students should not have to go deeply into debt in order to pay for college. We need to reduce the need for student debt and make it easier to refinance the debt already incurred.
After graduating from Iowa’s Grinnell College and the University of Oregon School of Law, Jon worked for 14 years at the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau providing fiscal and policy information and analysis used and trusted by legislators from both political parties. Jon then worked for 15 years as a Management Analyst for the Iowa Department of Human Services, implementing technology projects that saved tax dollars and improved services. While working for the IDHS Jon served on Governor Vilsack’s Redesign Research Team and in the 2008 Rebuild Iowa Office.
Jon served four years on the Des Moines School Board, including a year as Board President. He is a past president of the Des Moines Council of PTAs and past treasurer of the Iowa PTA, served on the Board of Directors of the Polk-Des Moines Taxpayers Association (now the Taxpayers Association of Central Iowa), and has served as treasurer for the North of Grand Neighborhood Association. Jon and his wife Mary have been married for 36 years.
Contact Jon at 556-3942 or jonneiderbach@gmail.com. More information is available at the campaign web site www.jonneiderbach.com, on his campaign’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/jonneiderbach2016, and on Twitter at @neiderbach2016.