The fight to bring the Blue Wave to Iowa

The fight to bring the Blue Wave to Iowa

The four years Shea Seiff spent as a student at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa awakened in her a fierce political consciousness and activist spirit.  
“Before college I wasn’t as politically active as I should have been, but when I came to Des Moines, I began to be more civically engaged and protest a lot more on issues like immigration, women’s rights, Black Lives Matter, and racial discrimination on my own campus,” says Shea.
Shea graduated from Drake in May, and in June she began a different kind of education when she joined the Progressive Turnout Project as a Field Representative in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District (IA-03) – the same district she called home during her college years. 
Formerly a Lean Republican district, IA-03 is now classified by The Cook Political Report as a Toss-Up. While Donald Trump won IA-03 in 2016, the district went to Barack Obama in both 2012 and 2008.
Just a few days ago, former President Obama tweeted his “Second Wave of 2018 Midterm Endorsements,” which included nine Iowan Democratic candidates, among them Fred Hubbell for Governor and Cindy Axne for Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District.
Axne is an Iowa native with a long history of community activism and the unique experience of promoting efficiency among state agencies. She is running against Republican incumbent Brian Young, who has occupied the seat since 2015.
“Cindy [Axne] is passionate about equal pay, affordable health care, our immigration system, protecting Iowa farms, and the importance of public education,” says Shea, who had the opportunity to meet Axne in person over the summer.
In September, the Progressive Turnout Project team in Des Moines participated in a voter registration event at the Latino Heritage Festival in downtown. They set up a booth to register voters, sign people up for absentee ballots, and generally do what they do best: talk with and listen to voters.
While there, Shea and the rest of the team were greeted by Deidre DeJear, the Democratic candidate striving to upset Republican Paul Pate’s bid for reelection as Secretary of State of Iowa.  
“It was very exciting when Deidre [DeJear] stopped by our booth to say hello,” says Shea. “She took a photo with our team members holding a sign that said ‘I’m voting for…YOU.’”
“Deidre [DeJear] is a small business owner and dedicates her time to helping improve her community through work like non-profits,” says Shea. “In addition to being passionate about educating her community on financial management, economic improvement, and civic engagement, Deidre [DeJear] is also very passionate about protecting the right to vote.”
During Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign, DeJear played a major role in increasing the number of African American voters in Iowa. Six years later, Shea, as a Field Representative for the Progressive Turnout Project, is likewise working to facilitate voting among traditionally disenfranchised groups.
Shea says, “Some of my most rewarding interactions have been with older voters, or with voters who have a hard time getting to polls – voters who are so thankful for people coming to their door with vote-by-mail requests. Some people have even told me they wouldn’t have voted if we hadn’t been there to help them.”
When it comes to election day, Shea has every confidence in the voters of Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District.
“Voters turned this into a swing district,” she says, “and they can certainly turn it blue this November.”