Ahead of the Nov. 5 general election, the T-R sent out questionnaires to the candidates in competitive races for local, state and federal offices within our coverage area. Today’s spotlight is focused on the two candidates in the race to replace retiring Rep. Dave Deyoe, a Republican from Nevada, in Iowa House District 51, which covers roughly ¾ of Marshall County and covers the northwest, southwest and northeast quadrants of the county — including communities like Green Mountain, Albion, Liscomb, St. Anthony, Clemons, Rhodes, Melbourne and State Center — along with a large swath of Story County outside of Ames. Republican Brett Barker is a pharmacist who serves as the mayor of Nevada, while Democrat Ryan Condon, also of Nevada, is a U.S. Army veteran who is currently an Eligibility Benefits Specialist for food assistance, Medicaid, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

The first half of their responses are printed below, and the remainder will be included in tomorrow’s paper.

1. What is your personal, professional and educational background, and why you are running for Iowa House?

Brett Barker: I came to Iowa in 2002 to attend the University of Iowa and never looked back. After graduating with my Doctor of Pharmacy, my wife, Tracy, and I relocated to Nevada. This is where we are raising our 5 children and where we are proud to call home. As an Eagle Scout born into a Navy family, service is at the core of who I am. After being heavily involved on campus at the University of Iowa, I moved to Nevada and quickly became active in our community, volunteering with our local church and being sworn in to the Nevada City Council in 2010. Having been raised in rural communities, I am passionate about making rural Iowa a place that our families can thrive and our children will choose to make their homes. I am running for the Iowa House because we need leaders with the vision and leadership to deliver results including strong families and students, strong communities, and a strong economy.

Ryan Condon: I am a US Army Veteran who was deployed during Operation Enduring Freedom. I am a husband and father to four boys. I am also a Cub Scout and Boy Scout Leader for Nevada, a volunteer for Food at First , a member of the Planning and Zoning commission in Nevada, vice president of the Nevada PTA, and a member of the American Legion. I graduated from ISU with a BS in Psychology, and my career has been focused on service to country and state. I have worked as a drug and alcohol counselor for Youth and Shelter Services, a Child Support Recovery Officer, a Public Defender Investigator and am currently an Eligibility Benefits Specialist for food assistance, Medicaid, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. I had been an Unemployment Fraud Investigator, but took a demotion in order to run. I felt it was important to run as the middle class has been ignored in our state for far too long, out of state money, lobbyists, and special interests have ruined true representation of the people of the 51st. Our representatives should be transparent and accountable.

Barker: Thanks to the strong leadership of Governor Reynolds and our Iowa Republicans, Iowa is a bright spot nationally. In Iowa, we have cut taxes, removed excessive regulatory burdens, empowered parents, and made our state a place that families can prosper. These reforms have resulted in Iowa being ranked the #3 state for opportunity and the #6 state overall by US News & World Report.

Condon: I do not feel it’s headed in the right direction for the middle class. There is far too much fraud, waste, and abuse in programs such as school vouchers. The IUC (Iowa Utility Commission) has allowed private corporations the ability to seize private citizens’ land for profit. The AEA restructure was poorly conceived, not wanted by Iowans, and does nothing to improve our schools as it stands now. If elected I would endeavor to undo the unwanted changes to our AEAs, revise school vouchers to include income limits for households, and work to pass legislation to prevent eminent domain abuse. Our tax structure needs to focus on Iowa families and small businesses, not large corporations. I am open to the flat tax, but not as implemented, the flat tax should be applied equally to all of Iowa, including corporations, no carving out for special interests.

3. You are both vying to replace outgoing Rep. Dave Deyoe, a Republican who has held office since 2006. Why do you feel that you are the most qualified candidate to fill his shoes?

Barker: During my time as Mayor of Nevada, I prioritized strengthening our community through economic and community development, Main Street revitalization, and quality of life opportunities. Nevada has experienced unprecedented job growth through small business, industry, agriculture, and renewable energy, and can be a model for Iowa communities.

I am running for Iowa House because my depth of experience in economic development, healthcare, rural revitalization, and foster care will help our state enact policies to make Iowa a place where families can thrive and the next generation will be proud to call home. I will use this experience to fight for policies that are right for you and will move Iowa forward. My record as a leader is full of big dreams turned into reality through bringing the right people to the table and having the persistence and tenacity to see them through. These are the same qualities that I hope to use to effectively champion policies in Des Moines that improve the lives of all Iowans.

Condon: Dave Deyoe was unresponsive to his constituents and ignored their concerns and voted against the interests of the 51st. He was beholden to special interests and his campaign donations reflected that. He accepted money from Bruce Rastetter, who is one of the primary people in support of the Carbon Capture Pipeline.

I believe in absolute transparency and accountability to the people of the 51st. 86.6% of my donations come from within the district. I take no PAC or Corporate PAC money. Unlike my opponent, I do not have out of state billionaires funding my campaign, 74% of his money is raised out of district and is filled with PAC and Corporate PAC money. If we want to tackle the problem of money in our politics, we need to make a change, and that is how I have been running my campaign.

I go to events of all kinds from the Pachyderm Club in Marshalltown to forums where voters of all stripes can ask me questions, unscripted, and answer their concerns. I believe in representing all of the 51st, not just the bit that agrees with me.

4. Do you support the AEA reform bill and Education Savings Accounts for students who attend nonpublic schools in Iowa? Additionally, do you believe that Iowa’s public schools are currently adequately funded and on the right track?

Barker: The Iowa Legislature just passed one of the largest funding increases for public education and significantly increased teacher pay to 5th highest in the nation. Iowa has a long and proud history of educational excellence. My wife and I are products of public schools and all our children attend the Nevada Community School District. I also believe that all parents, regardless of their income, should be able to make the decision on which educational options are best for their children, be that the local public school district, another school district, a private school, or homeschooling. These families pay taxes and Education Savings Accounts allow parents to choose the best educational option for their children. While providing accountability and flexibility in the AEA system to local school boards is a good goal, in the Iowa House, I will vote to ensure children with special needs receive the services they need to thrive.

Condon: No, I do not support the legislation passed regarding AEA and ESA programs. No one asked for them, in fact most opposed both programs. Governor Reynolds did not even announce the AEA changes to the Republican Party prior to the last legislative session, she did it on a whim, even though the people were overwhelmingly against it.

Private schools do not have the oversight and accountability that public schools have, but are now receiving public funds. This is unacceptable. School choice was already in place, and will remain so. Taxpayers should not have to subsidize wealthy individuals’ private school tuition.

Our school boards have been doing an amazing job in spite of, not because of these changes. We need to revert back to funding our public schools, and worry less about the wealthy.

5. Do you support efforts to restrict books that contain sexually explicit or LGBTQ+ themes from public schools? Why or why not?

Barker: It’s important to ensure that our children do not have access to sexually explicit materials in our schools. If parents wish for their children to read sexually explicit material, they have the right to do so, but it should not be available to children on the shelves of school libraries. As a father of 5, I will always vote to protect our children and their innocence.

Condon: I am for parental choice and responsibility. I do not support the state taking away that ability. If a parent does not want a child to read a certain book, procedures already exist to prevent that. The state should not be in the business of restricting books, that should be left to the parents.

6. Over the last few years, several bills related to gender identity have passed the state legislature, including a ban on transition surgeries before the age of 18 and a law banning transgender athletes who were born male from participating in women’s sports. Do you support these moves, and what, if any, additional legislation would you propose if elected?

Barker: I support treating everyone with respect and believe that adults can make their own decisions, but we must always protect our children. Our country has made tremendous progress empowering girls and women through sports and allowing biological boys, with vast biological advantage, to compete in girls’ sports undermines that progress. Children do not have the developmental maturity to make decisions about permanent, life-altering surgeries.

Condon: I am for personal and parental rights. I agree the person needs to be mature enough to make that decision, and it is a lengthy and elaborate process and is not done on a whim. Only 2% of high school students identify as transgender, far fewer athletes. We have larger fish to fry in the state than this. Shall we test every child before an event? Just select a few for testing based on what we assume from their looks? Shall we test the body chemistry of every athlete and if there is variation of any sort deny them the ability to compete? This had not been an issue, trans people have existed for a long time. It’s being used as a political boogeyman to prevent real issues in our state from being addressed.

Barker: I am pro life, but I also believe that we must focus on preventing parents from feeling like abortion is the best or only option by minimizing unwanted pregnancies, supporting families after the birth of the child, and ensuring we have a robust foster and adoption system. One example of this is the House should pass Governor Reynold’s proposal allowing pharmacists to provide birth control in order to prevent unwanted pregnancies.

Condon: The state has no business dictating such personal decisions for women and families. This decision needs to be left to women, their families, and their doctors. It is a complex issue, personal decision, and government bureaucrats do not need to insert themselves into it.