Dear <<First Name>>,
It’s a new year and with that comes new perspectives and new outlooks.
In November of 2020, I put my name forward to run for Chair of the Iowa Democratic Party and with it I shared a plan to help our party regain our footing in our state. It was with determination and optimism that I stepped forward to offer my services to our party but since my initial announcement, my family’s circumstances have come to bear on my plans for 2021.
It is with great regret that have chosen to withdraw my name for consideration as Chair of the Iowa Democratic Party.
Unequivocally, the Chair position in 2021 is one that requires at minimum 40 hours a week of dedicated and focused effort. At many points throughout the year, it could easily require double that. It is because I so firmly believe that anything less would be a disservice to the role and to the Democrats of our state, I am bowing out. I would strongly have my doubts about the ability of any person who would attempt to do this incredibly important work as a part-time gig.
As many people close to me know, I have a son who has ADHD and is on the Autism Spectrum. He also has severe anxiety disorder which has been exacerbated by this pandemic. While my two younger children have chosen to transition back to face-to-face school, my son, who is a junior, has chosen to stick with 100% online school. My husband and I are supportive of his choice but because of his need for 2-4 hours a day of support to complete his schooling, my next five months (and possibly longer) will be dedicated to helping him earn the credits he needs to graduate from high school.
And I am not alone. The Coronavirus Pandemic has taken its toll on millions of moms just like me - thousands of us who have had to cut back our hours, those who are struggling to balance working from home with wrangling kids’ online learning, many of whom have had to delay education goals or their re-entry to the workforce, and many who have just quit all together to care for children or loved ones. I have seen my single-mom friends worn to a frazzle trying to hold it all together. I have seen marriages crumble and fall apart. I’ve seen mental health breakdowns. I’ve wept with friends who are mourning loved ones cut down by this deadly disease.
It is important to me to note, however that the answer to my situation and that of millions of caregivers like me, is not a full and open return to school alone. It is a well-organized, science-based public health effort to tamp down the virus with proper mitigation strategies AND broad testing & vaccination followed by a full and open return to school. Anything less will only prolong not just the the need for mitigation but also the preventable deaths and disabilities that come along with COVID-19.
That said, I do plan to continue my advocacy for issues I care about. I will continue to serve my community and work to help others. I will also continue to work on my master’s degree through Drake University’s online masters program.
I will continue my work and advocacy for gun safety issues with Moms Demand Action as I also continue my work on the boards of Project Iowa, Reach Out and Read Iowa and Ankeny Dollars for Scholars.
I am overwhelmingly grateful for the opportunity to run for Chair and the experience, relationships, and conversations I’ve had along the way. And because I believe in leaving anything better than you found it, I want to share some of the insights I’ve gained in the hopes that our next Chair and our State Central Committee can take them into account.
I shared my insights on Bleeding Heartland on what I believe are the first four things our new chair needs to tackle right away. You can read them here.
