A Democrat challenger to 3^rd District incumbent Republican Congressman David Young was in Atlantic, Sunday, visiting with persons attending the Cass County Fair. Cindy Axne is a fifth-generation Iowan, a small business owner and community activist. She graduated from the University of Iowa with an undergraduate degree in Journalism. She spoke with KJAN about her political and management background. She said she was a public servant for about a decade, serving in the Vilsack, Culver and Branstad administrations, and a couple of leadership positions, including the Department of Management, helping to bring in the wind industry and promoting the bio-fuels industry. She says also, she oversaw several complex statewide initiatives focusing on economic development, education, energy and the environment, transportation and human rights. She was also an administrator for the Iowa DNR. Along with her husband, she’s been a small business owner for the past 16-years, and the mother of two teenage boys.

Cindy Axne & family

She spoke of her reasons for wanting to get involved in State government, including the influence of her parents. She said her parents taught to to help others in her community. Some of the decisions being made in Washington, she says, are NOT working for Iowans, and are helping wealthy corporations. Her parents taught her to stand-up and fight back when things are not right, and her candidacy is an opportunity to do that and make sure Iowans have a voice in Congress. She says she’s all about helping families be successful, and part of that is making sure there are good paying jobs available to support a family.

Axne says “We have low unemployment, but unfortunately have remained stagnant, so our families aren’t doing as well as they should be. The cost of healthcare is out of control, as well as the cost of post-secondary education. We need to lower the cost of two-year and four-year colleges. I want to bring in Trades programs to our high schools. We need people out in Congress who are going to push for those economic opportunities for us.” She said also, the Trump administration should never have slapped tariffs on products, especially those related to agriculture, despite the $12-billion in aid he’s promised to help ease the pain of those tariffs. Axne said “This is just going to add to the debt load we already have, which is going to be a burden on our working class families, and our kids’ futures.”

Axne, whose mom grew up on a farm, spent summers on her grandparents farm in Warren County. She said “I know our farmers are proud people who work hard. They don’t want a hand-out. They want an opportunity to do what they do best, which is to produce for us, for our country and the rest of the world. She said “I don’t think we should be being used as pawns, and I certainly don’t believe our farmers think it’s the right thing either.”

She said she got into the race for the 3^rd Congressional District because she was disappointed in the decisions being made in Washington, and will fight for what’s right for the people in Iowa.