The Cindy Axne Congressional campaign rolled through Dallas Center Tuesday and stopped for a midday meal with the Dallas Center Rotary Club.
Axne, a Democrat from West Des Moines, is running for Iowa’s third Congressional district seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Her opponent is two-term incumbent Republican Rep. David Young of Van Meter.
“I think we need a voice out in Washington that will always stand up for what’s right,” she told the assembled Rotarians as they tucked into meatloaf and potatoes catered by the Radish in Grimes.
Axne grew up on the southside of Des Moines and graduated from the University of Iowa. After spending time in Illinois, where she earned an MBA from Northwestern University, she moved to West Des Moines in 2005 with her husband and two children.
From 2005 to 2014, Axne worked for the State of Iowa in administrative positions with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Iowa Department of Management and Iowa Department of Administrative Services. She now runs a digital design firm with her husband, John.
“Iowns are working incredibly hard,” Axne told the Rotarians, “and we’re absolutely playing by the rules, but quite honestly Washington doesn’t have our back, and I think we deserve a heck of a lot better, so that’s why I want to get out there.”
Axne herself has been working hard as her campaign for Congress enters the home stretch leading to the Nov. 6 general election.
“We’ve got over 135 meet and greets in every single county multiple times,” she said, and the sessions involve “listening to Iowans and their concerns about things like affordable quality health care, certainly good-paying jobs that our families can have opportunity with, protecting our public schools and, of course, making sure that our seniors can retire with dignity.”
Axne addressed the luncheon group for about 10 minutes and then answered questions on topics ranging from taxes and border security to common-sense gun laws and Iowa’s natural environment. She listed a number of particular concerns to Iowans, including schools, small businesses and micro-businesses, infrastructure renewal, clean energy and soil protection.
“Together, every single one of us can bring hope and opportunity to our neighbors, our district, out state and our country once again,” she said.
Axne also visited the Perry Perk coffeehouse Saturday in her 16-county campaign. Other politicians making local stops in their hectic schedules were U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), who led a small delegation of Dallas County Democrats to the polls for early voting Monday morning, and J. D. Scholten, the SiouxCity Democrat who is challenging U.S. Rep. Steve King for Iowa’s fourth Congressional District seat.
Axne’s opponent received the endorsement Tuesday of U.S. President Donald Trump at a rally in Council Bluffs.
“Remember this,” Trump said, “a vote for David is a vote for me and our agenda to make America great again.”
Axne has garnered endorsements from the Asian and Latino Coalition, the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters, NARAL Pro Choice America, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund and others.
