The Woodbury County Democratic Party held its nominating convention Wednesday evening, selecting Catelin Drey as the party’s candidate for the Iowa Senate District 1 seat.
Drey is an account supervisor at Antidote 71 and founder of Moms for Iowa, a grassroots initiative aimed at making public policy accessible to Iowans.
In a Woodbury Democrats press release, Drey said, “ Our district deserves a voice in Des Moines that is rooted in compassion, understands the challenges facing working families, and has the skills to get things done.”
Drey’s platform focuses on public education, accessible child care, economic equity, and bodily autonomy.
Christopher Prosch was selected in a special nominating convention by the Woodbury County Republican Party Executive Committee at a Tuesday evening position in Sioux City.
The special election that involves nominees Prosch and Drey will be held August 26th.
*Twelve months after flood waters devastated North Sioux City in Union County, city officials continue to work on recovery.
In the McCook Lake portion of town, many homes had to be completely removed and there are large lots that lie empty. The North Sioux City Commissioners in May began work towards selecting a plan that will ideally help reduce any future flooding impact at McCook Lake.
In their latest meeting this week, Mayor Chris Bogenrief aired a possible new Homeowners Recovery Program first phase. The current proposal is that the city would offer to buy lots from property owners who lost homes, which is about 20.
One of the possible ways to determine the city buyout is twice the property value prior to the June 2024 floods. A North Sioux City Commission memo from July 7 said officials will continue work towards figuring out the full price tag for any recovery fund program put in place.
Floodwaters from the nearby Big Sioux River that forms the border of IOwa and South Dakota flowed into McCook Lake following days of heavy rainfall.
When it comes to possible plans for future flooding prevention, the commissioners are working with the Stockwell Engineers consulting firm on possible plans.
State officials last June said severe flooding at McCook Lake in Union County was likely inevitable due to the amount of rainfall that hit the region.
*The Trump administration has gone back and forth on whether immigrants who are in the U.S. without legal status should be allowed to work on U.S. farms.
President Donald Trump has said farmers should have a say in whether their laborers, who are in the U.S. without legal status, should be deported. But Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins said this week automation and requirements that people receiving Medicaid must also work will help fill the gaps left by deporting migrant workers.
Republican Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says it's important to improve legal pathways into some industries for immigrants.
“This is a workforce visa, not an amnesty issue, and we need to make sure that we have those legal pathways for people to come here to work in critical industries like agriculture. So that’s what I look forward to working with the administration on,” Hinson said.
In related news, people gathered Wednesday) outside the Immigration Customs and Enforcement office in Cedar Rapids to protest a 20-year-old man being deported to Guatemala. That man had lived in eastern Iowa for seven years, and had no criminal background.
The protestors said Pascual Pedro was denied due process.
*In other news, the field for Iowa’s 4th Congressional District this week continues to quickly evolve.
Two new candidates entered the race over the last three days, and on Thursday a presumed candidate dropped out.
State Senator Lynn Evans will not pursue the position, which won’t have an incumbent since current Congressman Randy Feenstra is now running for governor.
The current candidates are Ashley WolfTornabane, a Democrat from Storm Lake, plus Republican state representative Matt Windschitl and Republican Chris McGowan, who is President of the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce.
* In other news, Red Sky Nation is hosting the 4th annual Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Pow Wow this weekend beginning Friday.
Trisha Rivers, Executive Director of Red Sky Nation, told Siouxland Public Media,” It is a time to shed light on the interconnected issues that contribute to this ongoing public health crisis within Indian Country. It is a time to bring resources and education to one spot and highlight different MMIR stories.”
One way the intertribal pow wow highlights these stories is by naming the dances after relatives who have been missing or murdered including Terri McCauley, Ashlea Aldrich, and Marlon White eyes.
The pow wow runs from July 11th-13th at Riverside Park in Sioux City and is open to the public. People are encouraged to attend the event, observe, and learn.
