Iowa Dem U.S. House challengers raise big, but Republican incumbents have more cash

Brianne Pfannenstiel | The Des Moines Register

Show Caption Hide Caption Young vs Axne in race for Iowa's 3rd District Republican Congressman David Young and Democrat Cindy Axne will face off in Iowa's 3rd Congressional District election in November.

Democratic candidates for Congress Abby Finkenauer and Cindy Axne outraised their Republican rivals in two races that will be hotly contested in November.

The two women posted stronger fundraising numbers for the quarter that ended June 30, but the incumbent Republicans they'll face in November — Rod Blum and David Young, respectively — each have more in the bank after serving multiple terms in Congress.

Reports released Sunday cover money raised and spent between May 17 and June 30.

Here's a look at Iowa's four U.S. House races, the fundraising and the state of the races:

1st District

ABOUT THE RACE: Finkenauer, a two-term state legislator from Dubuque, easily won the district's Democratic primary with 67 percent of the vote last month. She takes on two-term Republican Blum, an entrepreneur who heads a software company. He was unopposed in the 2018 Republican primary.

In May, Roll Call, a national race-handicapper, listed Blum as the most likely U.S. House member to lose in November, and Democrats have targeted the seat in their bid to regain control of the House.

Finkenauer, 29, could become the youngest woman ever elected to Congress, and her candidacy — along with her solid fundraising — has attracted national attention.

More: This Iowan could become the youngest woman in Congress. But first, she has to beat incumbent Rod Blum.

The 1st District covers 20 counties in northeast Iowa, including the cities of Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Cedar Falls and Dubuque. The district's voters are about 33 percent Democrat and 28 percent Republican, with most of the rest identifying as no party. Donald Trump carried the district during the 2016 general election.

THE NUMBERS:

Abby Finkenauer (D)

Total raised this quarter: $605,924.92

Total spent this quarter: $263,116.91

Total cash on hand: $839,159.90

Rod Blum (R, incumbent)

Total raised this quarter: $266,613.10

Total spent this quarter: $42,014.75

Total cash on hand: $1,607,295.37

2nd District

ABOUT THE RACE: Six-term incumbent Dave Loebsack — Iowa's only Democrat in Congress — will face Republican Christopher Peters on the November ballot.

It's a rematch of the 2016 campaign in which Loebsack defeated Peters 54 percent to 46 percent.

Loebsack, 65, is a professor emeritus in political science at Cornell College in Mount Vernon. Peters, 57, is a former Libertarian Party candidate who unsuccessfully ran for the Iowa Senate in 2010. He's a surgeon who operates a clinic in Coralville.

The 2nd District covers 24 counties, mostly in southeast Iowa, including the cities of Davenport, Bettendorf, Burlington, Fort Madison, Mount Pleasant, Pella, Iowa City, Clinton, Fairfield and Ottumwa. The district's voters are about 34 percent Democratic and 29 percent Republican, with most of the rest identifying as no party.

THE NUMBERS:

David Loebsack (D, incumbent)

Total raised this quarter: $197,039.84

Total spent this quarter: $47,890.70

Total cash on hand: $1,992,293.71

Christopher Peters (R)

Total raised this quarter: $55,108.52

Total spent this quarter: $39,194.55

Total cash on hand: $28,491.34

3rd District

ABOUT THE RACE: Axne is a former state government official and a small-business owner from West Des Moines. She is challenging Young, a two-term Republican from Van Meter, who was unopposed for his party's nomination. So was Bryan Jack Holder of Council Bluffs, a Libertarian Party candidate who has unsuccessfully run for public office in the past.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Red to Blue program, which works to bolster Democrats in competitive races against incumbent U.S. House Republicans, says Iowa's 3rd District race is a target. The organization has committed to providing organizational, strategic and fundraising support to Axne as part of those efforts. She said this week that her polling puts her slightly ahead of Young.

Iowa's 3rd Congressional District covers 16 counties in southwest Iowa and includes the cities of Des Moines and Council Bluffs. The district's voters are evenly split with about 34 percent registered as Democrats and 34 percent as Republican. Most of the rest identify as no party.

THE NUMBERS:

Cindy Axne (D)

Total raised this quarter: $528,115.83

Total spent this quarter: $233,428.89

Total cash on hand: $465,189.25

David Young (R, incumbent)

Total raised this quarter: $489,094.98

Total spent this quarter: $60,715.32

Total cash on hand: $1,434,628.80

Bryan Jack Holder (L)

Campaign finance information for Bryan Jack Holder was not immediately available through the Federal Election Commission.

4th District

ABOUT THE RACE: Sitting Rep. Steve King is not known for his fundraising prowess, and Democratic challenger J.D. Scholten, a former professional baseball player, has outpaced King in both fundraising and cash on hand.

But King, a social and fiscal conservative who was first elected to Congress in 2002, has remained nearly unbeatable in this district, even as he regularly draws rebuke for making controversial comments.

More: Can Steve King be defeated? History says probably not

No corner of the state is more ardently conservative than the 4th District: About 25 percent of the districts voters are Democrat and 39 percent are Republican. Most of the rest identify as no party.

THE NUMBERS:

J.D. Scholten (D)

Total raised this quarter: $269,162.33

Total spent this quarter: $209,944.68

Total cash on hand: $254,566.05

Steve King (R, incumbent)

Total raised this quarter: $70,601.78

Total spent this quarter: $40,298.16

Total cash on hand: $117,554.05

Chris Aldrich (L)

Campaign finance information for Chris Aldrich was not immediately available through the Federal Election Commission.