At the time of this Zoom session, there were still Iowa state-level races unopposed by Democrats. The session identified districts that still needed candidates and discussed how candidates can still get on the ballot for the General Election in November and ways we can all work together to recruit for these races. Iowa Senate Democratic Leader Janice Weiner guided attendees in the “how” of recruiting Democratic challengers, and Iowa Democratic Party Affairs Director Lynsey Hart detailed the rules and nomination process to get on the ballot at this stage of the election cycle. Jo Vetter, Democratic Women’s Caucus Chair, was host. 

JANICE WEINER, Iowa Senate Democratic Leader, is a graduate of Princeton University and Stanford Law School. She joined the US State Department in 1987 and served in multiple international postings. After retiring from the Foreign Service, she returned to Iowa in 2015. She served on the Iowa City City Council before being elected to the Iowa Senate in 2022. In addition to her work in the Senate, she has worked tirelessly traveling the state, knocking doors, listening to Iowans, and helping flip three Iowa Senate seats in special elections over the past two years. Senator Weiner knows what is necessary to get Democrats running for office and winning elections.

LYNSEY HART is a force in local, state, and national politics. She’s currently Party Affairs Director for the Iowa Democratic Party. Previously she managed state and municipal campaigns in Iowa and Wisconsin, including Kayla Koether’s bid for Iowa House in 2020, and she was a field organizer for the Elizabeth Warren for President campaign in 2019 to 2020.