GOP primary challenger backs Democrat Ryan Melton in IA-04
The plot thickens
This post first appeared at Bleeding Heartland and is shared here as part of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. For regular emails linking to all recent Bleeding Heartland articles and commentary, including more coverage of the 2024 elections, subscribe to the free Evening Heartland newsletter. Julie Gammack interviewed Ryan Melton for her Monday Zoom; you can find that video here. If your email provider truncates this post, you can read the whole article without interruption at this link.
Kevin Virgil, who gained nearly 40 percent of the vote in the Republican primary to represent Iowa’s fourth Congressional district, has encouraged his supporters to consider splitting their votes: Donald Trump for president and Democrat Ryan Melton for Congress.
Virgil shared one of Melton’s posts on X/Twitter on the evening of August 23, praising the Democrat for opposing “land seizure for CO2 pipelines” and “corporate capture in Iowa and in DC,” while asking “hard questions about Iowa’s sky-high cancer rates.”
“If you care about our children’s future,” Virgil wrote, “then it’s time to think about voting for a split-ticket with Trump and @melton4iowa.”
Virgil added that he does not “say this lightly,” since the Democratic Party is “beyond redemption” and “truly evil” at the national level. He asserted that voting for Melton would shock the Iowa GOP establishment, which in his view “is selling out its constituents.”
On August 25, Virgil posted a longer explanation of his tactical voting strategy on X/Twitter as well as on his campaign’s Facebook page. Excerpts:
I am not a career politician and never had any ambitions to run for office. I only chose to do so because our current congressman, Randy Feenstra, is so widely disliked. Most voters acknowledge that he accomplishes nothing, that he refuses to engage with his constituents, and that he has been bought and paid for by the national party establishment and by his corporate donors.
Yet for the past two terms voters have held their noses and voted for him, because Republicans outnumber Democrats 2-to-1 in this district. And for most of them, voting any other way would be unthinkable – regardless of how bad their party’s candidate might be.
But that blind party loyalty hasn’t helped our state, and has brought forth serious problems. […]
And as of today both of our US Senators and all four congressional seats are controlled by the GOP. It’s a dream scenario that only exists in a handful of states.
What do we have to show for it today?
Iowa’s K-12 education system has dropped from #1 among all 50 states when I was a student in the 1980s, to #24 today (source: USNWR)
We have the second highest rate of cancer diagnoses in all 50 states, and we are the ONLY state where cancer rates are rising
We have become one of the crossroads of human trafficking in the US
We are the #9 state in % of children living below the poverty line
We are in the bottom 10% for mental health facilities and care
Family farms are disappearing
Small hog farms (like the one I grew up in) have nearly disappeared and the largest pork producing business in this state is now controlled by the Chinese Communist Party
Iowa has much to be proud of, and there are many Republican politicians who are working hard to improve their constituents’ lives. The ‘endorsements’ page on my campaign website is full of examples of these good leaders.
The problem is that our voter base has become far too tolerant of BAD leaders, all in the sake of party loyalty.
Frankly, the only way that our so-called leadership is going to get the message is if ‘we the people’ demonstrate that we are no longer willing to tolerate bad candidates.
That’s why I am proposing a vote for Ryan Melton this November. Ryan and I disagree on many issues – right to life, taxation, etc. But he’s pragmatic, and knows that Western Iowa is a highly conservative district. I believe that he has good character and will represent us well – certainly better than our current congressman. (It also doesn’t hurt that the Democratic Party doesn’t even acknowledge his existence. He will be his own man.) […]
[…] Iowa’s fortunes have deteriorated after six decades of one-party leadership in this state. We need elected officials who will ask hard questions about the serious issues:
What is the linkage between glyphosate herbicides and pesticides, and our sky-high cancer rates?
Why are our politicians so eager to sell out our constitutional rights for a CO2 pipeline when a recent poll showed that 78% of Iowans oppose it?
Why are our leaders so beholden to corporate donors instead of their constituents?
In short, the Republican party needs a serious wake-up call. We need better leaders who remember that they represent “we the people” and not Big Ag.
I have heard from hundreds, if not thousands, of voters who intend to write in my name on the ballot this November in the general election. I am so grateful for their support. However as we all know, 99.9% of write-in campaigns are unsuccessful and I urge them to use their vote more wisely.
I urge them to consider ‘holding their nose’ and voting out a bad leader, and sending a very clear message to Des Moines that our elected leaders need to remember who they work for.
A LONG SHOT IN A DEEP-RED DISTRICT
It would take a massive crossover vote for any Democrat to win in the reddest of Iowa’s four U.S. House districts. Feenstra defeated Melton in the 2022 election to represent IA-04 by 67.3 percent to 30.4 percent. The latest official figures indicate that the Congressional district contains about 114,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats. Melton would also need strong support from no-party voters, who outnumber registered Democrats in IA-04 by about 53,000.
According to calculations by the Daily Kos Elections team (now known as The Downballot), Trump received 62.2 percent of the 2020 presidential vote in the 36 counties that currently make up IA-04, while Joe Biden received 36.2 percent.
Melton has been reaching out to diverse political constituencies. Earlier on August 23, he met with a Republican group in Marshalltown, where, he said, he and the audience “found a lot of agreement on our opposition to the carbon capture pipelines,” getting corporate money out of politics, addressing the root causes of Iowa’s high cancer rate, and developing a “robust immigrant labor program.”
Opposing eminent domain for CO2 pipelines was a central focus of Virgil’s primary campaign in IA-04, and he has made clear he is strongly considering running for Congress again. He may be hoping for an easier path next cycle. If Melton scores a huge political upset, Virgil would be seeking the 2026 nomination in an open field, rather than challenging an incumbent who outspent him by more than 20-1 before this year’s June primary.
About 40 minutes after urging followers to consider splitting their votes for Trump and Melton, Virgil reinforced his conservative bona fides by sharing my X/Twitter post about Vice President Kamala Harris’ acceptance speech with his own comment:
My 8th grade son can read from a teleprompter too.
Harris would humiliate herself in a live, unscripted event. That’s why she won’t do them. She’s like Feenstra, but even dumber.
They want you to forget that she didn’t win a single delegate in 2020 and dropped out before Iowa.
DEMOCRAT SEES OPPORTUNITY FOR “COMMON GROUND”
Melton shared Virgil’s post on August 23, saying he was “grateful” for the consideration. “Kevin and I disagree on a number of issues, but we align on the issues he highlights, and I’d argue they are among the biggest issues causing the most harm” in the district. The Democrat also said he respects Virgil “for calling it as he sees it without hesitation despite the powerful in his own party wishing he wouldn’t.”
Melton provided this additional comment to Bleeding Heartland on August 24.
I’ve spoken with so many Republicans in the district that are fed up with Feenstra selling them out to Bruce Rastetter and other big moneyed corporate donors, and have decided it’s time for a protest vote to wrestle back power for themselves. I agree that their anger is warranted, and will work to listen to and represent all citizens of the district regardless of political affiliation if I receive the honor of winning the election in November.
Time and time again, when I meet Republicans, we typically agree we share more common ground than the powers that be that want to keep us divided want us to recognize. Once Republicans in the 4th meet me, they see they can trust me, as I’ve always rejected all corporate PAC money and always will. I don’t use party taking points and I don’t pay consultants to tell me what to say. My words are my own and my word is my bond.
REPUBLICAN ESTABLISHMENT STRIKES BACK
Iowa GOP state chair Jeff Kaufmann criticized Virgil’s position in an August 25 post, saying, “I’ve said it all year and I’ll say it again: refusing to support the candidate who wins the primary is a misguided position and completely disrespects the grassroots who voted in the primary. This position favors a socialist, anti-Trump candidate and helps Kamala Harris.”
No word from Kaufmann on whether supporting a candidate who tried to overturn the 2020 presidential election disrespects the grassroots who voted in that election.
The GOP establishment continued to close ranks behind Feenstra on August 26. The Republican Party of Iowa released another statement from Kaufmann condemning “Kevin Virgil’s endorsement of a radical, liberal Democrat” and defending Feenstra’s “track record of conservative excellence.”
U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson (IA-02) posted that afternoon, “By endorsing a radical Democrat, Kevin Virgil has made it clear that he puts politics over what’s best for the country & for Iowa. Looking forward to another big win from @RandyFeenstra this November.”
Later in the evening, Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01) posted, “NY liberal Kevin Virgil’s endorsement of a radical Dem for Congress is rich. My friend, @RandyFeenstra, is a strong conservative who delivers results, supports farmers & backs the blue 100%. Liberal Kevin Virgil may want Harris’ radical agenda in Iowa, but real Republicans don’t.”
The Feenstra campaign released its own statement saying,
It’s no surprise that New York liberal Kevin Virgil has endorsed anti-Trump liberal Ryan Melton. Virgil is an east coast liberal and chose to endorse a Democrat that would block the Trump agenda at every opportunity. This November, Iowans will reject the radical Virgil-Melton agenda and elect conservative champion Randy Feenstra.
The Feenstra campaign also shared many other statements condemning Virgil, from GOP central committees in Webster County (Fort Dodge area) and Story County (Ames), from the Iowa Federation of Republican Women’s executive committee, the Northwest Iowa Young Republicans, and the Iowa Federation of Young Republicans.
Governor Kim Reynolds posted on the morning of August 27, “Sore loser Kevin Virgil just endorsed @RandyFeenstra’s radical Democrat opponent who praises Bernie Sanders and believes biological men should play in girls sports. Conservatives in #IA04 won’t be fooled!”
Former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy did not condemn Virgil, whom he endorsed in the IA-04 primary. But he explained in an August 27 post that he’s endorsing Feenstra for the November election “because we need strong majorities in the House & Senate to enact President Trump’s agenda next year.”
“THIS IS WHY THE IOWA GOP IS SO BROKEN”
Virgil is sticking to his guns and responding to his critics on X/Twitter and Facebook. He mocked Feenstra for characterizing him as a “liberal,” adding, “He is the ultimate corporate sellout and the entire district knows it. He is why I entered the political arena in the first place. They don’t know how to deal with someone who has nothing to lose.”
He posted,
It takes a LOT of nerve for @hinsonashley to claim that I’m prioritizing politics over the people’s interest.
But then again she routinely does that when she votes for tax increases, debt ceiling raises, more money to Ukraine etc etc.
This is why the Iowa GOP is so broken.
Virgil said Reynolds “should ask the voters: Why is Randy Feenstra so widely disliked that his primary challenger took the drastic step of crossing party lines to endorse his opponent?”
As for Miller-Meeks, Virgil cited the Republican Liberty Caucus which has claimed “when it comes to voting with the Constitution – Iowa’s Congressional delegation is the 3rd-worst in the entire USA.”
Only Oregon & Washington were worse.
Iowa’s reps have been selling out the people on property rights, public health, giving hundreds of billions of dollars to foreign governments…and to add insult to injury, Feenstra refuses to meet with his constituents.
Voters are fed up. My suggestion to the GOP is to spend less time denouncing me, and start explaining how they are going to fight for better outcomes on the issues that the public cares about.
More broadly, Virgil observed, “Very interesting that all of the ongoing ‘denouncing’ of my decision to not support a bad leader is full of hysterics and ad hominem attacks, but not a single objective rebuttal to my claims.”
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the big question: how will Summit get a pipeline beneath the Missouri River and other waterways? Yes, the Army Corp of engineers granted a permit for Dakota Access--which Biden courageously canceled--yet this is a step Summit has yet to take.
Wow! But massive ticket-splitting is climbing a rock wall bare-handed. Again, "interesting times!"