It’s no surprise that AFSCME Council 61 endorsed a candidate in the Democrat primary in Iowa’s Gubernatorial race. What is remarkable is the fact they endorsed one of the most unqualified candidates in the race – State Senator Nate Boulton (D-Des Moines).
Pat Rynard at Iowa Starting Line writes:
This adds to Boulton’s long list of labor unions that have decided to back him early on in the Democrats’ gubernatorial primary. A labor rights attorney whose father is a longtime Steelworker union official, Boulton now has the backing of 20 unions representing over 70,000 Iowa workers, including many large and influential Iowa locals like the Building Trades, Steelworks and Laborers. It appears he’ll have the vast majority of the labor movement with him for his candidacy, though SEIU is expected to support Cathy Glasson, their local president.
“I could not be more excited and honored to have the support of AFSCME Council 61,” Boulton said in a press release. “Every day, Iowa’s public employees go to work keeping our communities safe and doing everything they can to ensure all Iowans have a high quality of life. This is the time for Iowans to stand together and fight for the very soul of our state.”
Beyond being a labor lawyer (and a relatively young one at that – he is 37-years-old), he has only served one year in the Iowa Senate.
I did not realize one year in the minority caucus was a mandate to run for governor. As a constituent of his, I find it unconscionable that he couldn’t finish his first term before seeking higher office.
Iowa Democrats appear to be so eager to find their next rock star that they don’t seem to care about having experience.
Should Boulton win the primary, Iowa Democrats will nominate yet another candidate who may be ideologically pure in their perspective but is ill-equipped to govern. By comparison, the Democratic field overall offers less experience in public service than the Republican field, and Boulton is among the least experienced. With labor unions lining up support behind him one also has to wonder how well he would represent Iowa taxpayers at the collective bargaining table as well.