Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024
Vol. 6, No. 7
PCMExplorer Local People. Local Stories.
HAPPY PCM HOMECOMING 2024 The Mustangs celebrate homecoming weeks with dress-up days, a parade, crowning King Kaden Clark and Queen Addison Shannon and an overwhelming victory on the football field
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Republicans lose the bells and whistles and get serious at trapshoot Fundraiser emphasizes the tight races between Dunwell, Trump, Miller-Meeks
Christopher Braunschweig/PCM Explorer Iowa House Rep. Jon Dunwell speaks during the Jasper County GOP Trapshoot fundraiser on Sept. 21 in Newton. Dunwell is running for re-election to the Iowa House District 38 seat.
By Christopher Braunschweig PCM Explorer The Jasper County GOP Trapshoot was uncharacteristically restrained this year apart from the fiery speeches from guests like U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who fought back against new ads from her opponent, and former acting U.S. Attorney General Matt Whittaker, who lobbied for another Trump presidency. Sure, folks fired off rounds of trap and skeet, and many seemed to be having a good time doing it in between chats with candidates or their representatives. But the energy was surprisingly low for an event that has attracted nearly every major Republican candidate and helped ramp up enthusiasm amongst the ranks. In the past, guests like a “fired up” Gary Leffler took an extreme approach. Leffler, who ran an unsuccessful primary for Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District seat two years
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ago but is most famously known for his American Flag-decorated tractor, featured signs and enlarged dollar bills demonizing Democrats. The trapshoot has hosted Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and former Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, numerous statehouse legislators and council members and supervisors, presidential candidates and even a former contestant on “The Apprentice.” Still, even without special guests the trapshoot has always managed to gather Republicans in one space for an exciting start to the day. Perhaps it was the change in weather that caused this anomaly. Usually, the trapshoot is mired by extreme forecasts. It’s either really windy, really muggy, really rainy or really bright. But for the first hour or so the weather was damn near perfect. Then the wind picked up. Then GOP | 3A
Democrats feel re-energized and rally with Iowa House candidate Soup supper fundraiser draws enthusiastic support for Magg, Harris, Bohannan
Christopher Braunschweig/PCM Explorer Brad Magg, the Democratic candidate running for Iowa House District 38, speaks to a crowd of supporters during the annual Jasper County Democrats Soup Supper on Sept. 22 in Newton. Magg is a member of the Colfax City Council and owner of Goldie’s Ice Cream Shoppe in Prairie City.
By Christopher Braunschweig PCM Explorer Oftentimes the Jasper County Democratic Party Soup Supper is a low key affair barely running off the fumes of a handful of ticked off candidates, and while its atmosphere this year was certainly relaxed, the event was teeming with eager party members who haven’t looked this motivated in some time. For what seems like an eternity — especially for Republicans — Jasper County has remained a Democratic stronghold. It was blue through and through. Unions and the presence of Maytag most surely supplied the votes
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come Election Day. But, obviously, times have changed. Now, there are only a few blue offices left. In 2018, Chaz Allen resigned from his seat on the Iowa Senate. That same year Jasper County welcomed a fully Republican board of supervisors with newly elected Brandon Talsma and re-elected Denny Carpenter serving alongside Doug Cupples. In 2021, Wes Breckenridge resigned from the Iowa House. Today, only four Democrats hold major offices in Jasper County: Denise Allan in the recorder’s office, Doug Bishop in the treasurer’s office, John Halferty in the sheriff ’s office
and Scott Nicholson in the attorney’s office. However, upon Halferty’s retirement this year, that total will reduce to three. Following a string of defeats, the Jasper County Democratic Party has struggled to find its footing. That is until Brad Magg announced he was running for Iowa House District 38 against incumbent Rep. Jon Dunwell. The response from the community certainly gave the party a boost of confidence in their candidate. Coupled with the announcement that President Joe Biden would be dropping out of the race DEMS | 4A
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