DES MOINES, Iowa – Former U.S. Rep. Abby Finkenauer, D-Iowa, announced that she would run for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate.
I'm Abby Finkenauer, and I'm running for U.S. Senate because Iowa—and our Democracy—are worth fighting for.
After 46 years in DC, @ChuckGrassley has lost touch with both.
I'm from a proud union family. We don't back down. I'm in this to win.
Join us: https://t.co/28EVInMyva pic.twitter.com/NKvrJruAjW
— Abby Finkenauer (@Abby4Iowa) July 22, 2021
“My parents couldn’t give me a trust fund or debt-free college. But they taught me about seeing work to be done, and doing it, about treating people with respect. And about never thinking you are better than anyone else, no matter what you do, or where you go. When I was elected to Congress, I took those values with me. But the politicians who’ve been there for decades, don’t really want people like us there. They think they own democracy. And they were silent when it was attacked,” Finkenauer said in her announcement.
“Senator Grassley and Mitch McConnell, who should know better, but are so obsessed with power that they oppose anything that moves us forward. Since the Capitol was attacked, they’ve turned their backs on democracy and on us. They made their choice. And I’m making mine. I’m running for the United States Senate. I’m running for the United States Senate because this democracy is ours. And truth matters,” she stated.
“You see, our country only grows from truth and sacrifice from hard work and the courage to stand up for what really matters, jobs that aren’t just paychecks, but dreams for your children to do better, and the freedom to not just make a living, but to have a good life. Our campaign is about you. It’s about the working families like the one that I grew up in. It’s about our young people who have left and the Iowans left behind by those at the top. It’s about those who’ve been knocked down and getting back up. Together,” Finkenauer said.
She was a one-term member of Congress who lost to then State Representative Ashley Hinson in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District race in 2020.
On the Republican side, Grassley filed a statement of candidacy with the FEC in March but has not announced he will run for re-election. He told The Iowa Torch that he would make his decision this fall, but it is expected that he will run. State Senator Jim Carlin, R-Sioux City, currently is the only declared candidate running for the Republican nomination.
The National Republican Senatorial Campaign responded to Finkenauer’s announcement.
“Abby Finkenauer and her far-Left positions are indistinguishable from those of Bernie Sanders, AOC, and the socialist squad, so it’s not surprising Iowans fired her just last year,” NRSC press secretary Katharine Cooksey said. “Today, Abby signed up to become a two-time loser. Unlike Abby Finkenauer, Iowans do not support funding Sanctuary Cities, radical tax hikes, socialist spending sprees, and big government policies like Medicare for All. Iowans believe in limited government, fiscal responsibility, and creating opportunities across the state. They know Senator Chuck Grassley is in Washington fighting for those beliefs every day. Iowa needs a true conservative leader like Chuck Grassley in the Senate, not somebody like Abby Finkenauer who will work to destroy Iowans’ livelihoods.”
