Surprise! Gov. Reynolds isn’t running for re-election

24-HOUR DORMAN | TODD DORMAN

So, next year Iowa will elect a new governor. This was unexpected.

Gov. Kim Reynolds announced in a video Friday morning that she will not seek a third elected term in 2026. Recently, Reynolds seemed to hint she would run.

Where to begin. You might have noticed I wrote about her a lot. Let’s consider her record.

Reynolds’ biggest accomplishment is putting her signature on billions of dollars in income tax cuts. Most of the benefits went to the sort of wealthy Iowans who contribute to Reynolds’ campaigns or paid to fly her around the nation.

Will the GOP Jenga tower that is the state budget remain standing? It’s not going to be her problem.

Cutting taxes came at the expense of other pressing needs. Virtually everyone agrees that the state’s mental health system is inadequate, particularly for children. The governor supported bills that nibbled around the edges or reshuffled the deck chairs on funding — but the ship still is taking on water.

Her first bill signed as governor provided some additional funding for water quality improvement projects, but it doesn’t seem like she ever thought of the issue again. Iowa’s waters remain astoundingly dirty, and Reynolds and her agriculture allies made sure no one was required to do anything about it.

She was the first governor in recent memory who didn’t offer any major initiative to improve public schools. Instead, she created publicly funded scholarships for private school students. Next year, scholarships will be available to every student and are expected to cost more than $300 million. Reynolds also tried to dismantle Iowa’s system of Area Education Agencies, but after catching hell from constituents, lawmakers watered down the plan.

Instead of improving public schools, she spent her 2022 re-election campaign claiming public school libraries were

full of porn, that school drag shows were common, and that teachers were hell-bent on indoctrinating students and turning them into socialists.

An Iowa governor actually told us our education system should be more like Florida’s.

Reynolds never missed an opportunity to kick around transgender Iowans — especially kids. She pushed to ban transgender girls from girls’ sports, erased any mention of LGBTQ people from school curriculums, and decimated support plans for transgender students. This year, she was the driving force in removing “gender identity” as a protected class under the Iowa Civil Rights Act.

No Iowa governor has ever taken away civil rights once they had been granted. It was the worst action by an Iowa governor since William Harding signed an order barring the speaking of foreign languages during World War I.

Reynolds never saw a piece of lousy legislation passed by other red states that she didn’t try to emulate here: making it harder to get SNAP food help, shortening the period for unemployment payments, and refusing to even discuss raising the minimum wage.

In a Condition of the State speech, she claimed struggling Iowans are using safety net programs like a “hammock.” Reynolds sided with the nursing home industry to oppose more robust staffing rules. She had her moments. Issuing an executive order restoring voting rights to felons was the right call. She came to the Capitol steps to sign a bill barring police from using chokeholds, among other changes. It was passed unanimously by lawmakers as Black Lives Matter protests gripped the country. Under bright sunshine, Reynolds was joined by young BLM activists and Democratic lawmakers.

“To the thousands of Iowans who have taken to the streets calling for reforms to address inequities faced by people of color in our state, I want you to know that this is not the end of our work — it is just the beginning,” Reynolds said.

Roughly a year later, surrounded by law enforcement officers, she signed a “Back the Blue” bill intended to crack down on protests.

There’s probably stuff I’m missing, but I’m writing this just two hours after her announcement. There will be plenty of time to fully hash all this out. Especially the politics.

So, who’s going to run? This news should make Democratic State Auditor Rob Sand get serious about running for the Democratic nomination.

From the “Careful What You Wish For” department, Republican Attorney General Brenna Bird could jump in. Donald Trump has already said she’d make a fine governor.

I’m glad Reynolds is leaving Terrace Hill for many reasons. Will she use her freedom to flourish to seek another higher office or a White House appointment? Anything’s possible for a Red State Trailblazer.

Comments: (319) 398-8262; todd.dorman@thegazette.com