Cyndi Hanson
Iowa Congressman Steve King will face a Republican challenger in the June primary. Cyndi Hanson kicked off her bid to unseat King on Tuesday with a stop in Mason City.
The Mapleton native, who now lives in Sioux City, says she’s frustrated with the “division and gridlock” taking place in Washington, D.C. “I’m solution focused and collaborative in the way that I work, so seeing what’s happening is a great deal of frustration for me,” Hanson said. “I think the only way we can change the current situation is to change the players we have involved.”
Hanson is the executive director of Northeast Community College’s extended campus operation in South Sioux City. Hanson said she’s heard from a lot of people who say King’s “divisive rhetoric” isn’t good for Iowans.
“As I’m an Iowan and I talk with a lot of other people from our district, I think very often we are not about dividing people and separating and being divisive, but a lot more about pulling people together and recognizing the strengths in people,” Hanson said. “So yes, that is certainly a piece of it, I think it no longer represents Iowa.”
King is seeking a ninth term in Congress to represent Iowa’s Fourth District, which cover 39 counties. Hanson was also appointed two years ago by then Governor Branstad to the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service.
Four others have announced they are seeking the Democratic nomination in the Fourth District race; Webster City transit bus driver Paul Dahl, Spencer city councilwoman Leann Jacobsen, former professional baseball player J. D. Scholten of Sioux City, and Ames pediatrician John Paschen.
(Photo and story by Bob Fisher, KGLO, Mason City)