Democrat Patty Judge, a former lieutenant governor and state agriculture secretary, will launch a campaign as early as today for the Senate seat held by Charles Grassley, the Judiciary Committee chairman, reports the Des Moines Register.
Grassley and Judge are farmers. With a long record of political success, Judge could be a formidable challenger to Grassley, one of the most popular politicians in Iowa, elected to his sixth Senate term in 2010. Judge was a state senator before election to two terms as state agriculture secretary and then a term as lieutenant governor in 2006.
In an interview, Judge told the Register last week that she was considering a run for the Senate, largely because Grassley has refused to hold confirmation hearings for any Supreme Court nominee until next year. “I don’t like this deliberate obstruction of the process,” she told the Register.
So far, the only other candidate for the Democratic nomination is state Sen. Rob Hogg of Cedar Rapids. Two former state lawmakers have been mentioned as possible candidates.