C.J. Petersen chairs the Carroll County Democratic Party and a member of the Iowa Democratic Party State Central Committee. This commentary first appeared in the Carroll Times Herald.
Small business owner and Drake University grad Deidre DeJear is no stranger to making history.
She earned her political bona fides working for a young, charismatic long shot back in 2008 — and in 2018, when she was Iowa’s first Black statewide nominee of a major political party, President Barack Obama returned the favor with his endorsement of her bid to become Iowa’s secretary of state.
In DeJear, Iowans have a gubernatorial standard-bearer who is long on accomplishments and short on empty rhetoric. She seeks solutions that make sense, finds common ground when it counts, and doesn’t leave the room until a deal is done. DeJear’s friends affectionately call her “Deeds,” and it fits because of what she represents: a shift toward action over empty promises from the governor’s mansion.
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