DAY FIFTEEN - ABBY FINKENAUER

Day Fifteen | Abby Finkenauer | IA-01
410 Sawbuck Patriots | $4255 pledged today | $79,495 donated overall

Team:

We've had a bit of an update; lots more folks wrote donations to Biden/Harris, and a couple of you ALSO chose to max out. Holy cow. Our total for Friday now stands at $27,010. Thank you. 

And now to today's race...

THE SITUATION: IA-01 covers a few cities, including Dubuque and Cedar Rapids. With the exception of some of the Obama era, this district has been held by Rs since the '70s. It voted for Trump by a four point margin, and until he was defeated two years ago, a Tea Party congressman most recently represented the Fightin' First District. But it's not as easily described as a Solid R district as some others - it's elected Dems and Reeps alike over the years to various offices. It's a swinger, the First is - it's got the largest block of no-party-preference voters in the state. (And by investing in keeping it blue, our contributions go further - we also help turn out D voters for the IA Senate race and the Biden/Harris ticket in IA as well...)

THE COMPETITION: Since 2016, Ashley Hinson has been a member of the Iowa House of Representatives (state, not federal). She won that office after working as a TV news anchor in Cedar Rapids. She's caught the eye of national Republican leaders and organizations, who are supporting her bid and funneling money (over $4M pledged, with $4M more already spent) into her race. Why? Because they're looking for folks who are going full-on Trump these days. At the Iowa statehouse, she voted to release businesses of any  legal responsibility related to COVID-19 negligence, to defund Planned Parenthood and to support the tremendously restrictive Heartbeat Bill, to restrain the IA SecState from sending absentee ballots to IA voters... she's just generally built a super-duper track record.
 
OUR CANDIDATE: Abby Finkenauer was raised in Iowa, the daughter of a union pipefitter/welder and a school district employee. She's a first-generation college student, and viscerally understands that our nation must to create pathways to education for those families without that tradition. She served in the IA House of Representatives, and in 2018, when she unseated the IA-01 Tea Party incumbent in this district, she became the youngest woman ever to flip a congressional seat, and the second-youngest woman elected to the House. Further, 2018 was the first year in which a woman was elected to the House from Iowa.

(Narrator voice: "Hashtag Phenomenal Woman. Is that how the kids say it?")

Both Rs and Ds are sending substantial money in the direction of this race. Rs want to take it back, and see a pathway to get there. Ds want to defend it, and that pathway exists as well. My thoughts, after my analysis, is that it's a tossup, with a slight edge to our incumbent. So THE MATH SAYS SHE CAN WIN.

Sawbuck Patriots, it’s go time: click HERE and send $10 (or more!) to Abby's campaign. Our collective effort will invest $4255 today.

Day fifteen: Abby Finkenauer | IA-01 | 410 Sawbuck Patriots | $4255 | DONATE
Day fourteen: Carolyn Bourdeaux | GA-07 | 404 Sawbuck Patriots | $4685 | DONATE
Day thirteen: Biden/Harris | the Presidency | 401 Sawbuck Patriots | $27,010 | DONATE
Day twelve: Joe Cunningham | SC-01 |  390 Sawbuck Patriots | $4300 | DONATE
Day eleven: Doug Jones | Alabama Senate |  Sawbuck Patriots | $4975 | DONATE
Day ten: Kendra Horn | OK-05 |  348 Sawbuck Patriots | $3755 | DONATE
Day nine: Princess Bride Reunion | Wisconsin |  334 Sawbuck Patriots | $4495 |  DONATE
Day eight: Cristina Hale | IN-05 |  324 Sawbuck Patriots | $3585 | DONATE
Day seven: Wendy Davis | TX-21 |  311 Sawbuck Patriots | $3945| DONATE
Day six: Xochitl Torres Small | NM-02 |  293 Sawbuck Patriots | $3380 | DONATE
day five: Mark Kelly | Arizona Senate |  268 Sawbuck Patriots | $4480 | DONATE 
day four: Brynne Kennedy | CA-4 | 239 Sawbuck Patriots | $3030 | DONATE
day three: Max Rose | NY-11 | 208 Sawbuck Patriots | $2665 | DONATE
day two: Sara Gideon | Maine Senate | 161 Sawbuck Patriots | $3095 | DONATE
day one: Candace Valenzuela | TX-24 | 109 Sawbuck Patriots | $1840 | DONATE