MARION, Iowa — Iowa's status as the only Midwest state where gay couples can marry could be threatened by a special State Senate election being held after the state's Republican governor appointed a Democratic senator to a state post.
By appointing Sen. Swati Dandekar to the Iowa Utilities Board, Gov. Terry Branstad ensured that Republicans would have a shot at sharing control of the State Senate, a chamber where Democrats have used their 26-24 majority to block a number of GOP efforts, most notably a proposed constitutional amendment to make gay marriage illegal.
Branstad and the Republican-controlled House support beginning the multiyear process of putting a constitutional amendment to voters, and although a 25-to-25 split wouldn't ensure they would succeed in the next legislative session, their odds would be much better.
"This is a great opportunity to split the Senate and let a marriage amendment get debated on the Senate floor," said Bob Vander Plaats, president of the Family Leader, a group that led the successful campaign to remove three Iowa Supreme Court justices because of their support for a 2009 ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.
Republicans chose Cindy Golding, who owns several businesses with her husband that do consulting work, manage real estate and produce maple syrup and jellies, to replace Dandekar in the Senate. Democrats picked Liz Mathis, a former television news anchor who now works for a nonprofit child advocacy agency.
Matt Strawn, chairman of the Iowa Republican Party, said the Nov. 8 special election could be the most expensive legislative race in the state's history, with more than $1 million spent on the campaigns.
Iowa Democratic Party Chairwoman Sue Dvorsky agreed that the seat was a priority. "It's all-out, and there's no question we will put in the resources we need to retain that seat," she said.
After the State Supreme Court's unanimous decision that a state law allowing marriage only between a man and woman violated the Iowa Constitution, more than 3,300 same-sex marriages were performed in the state as of Dec. 31, 2010. Updated figures will be released at the end of this year.
Iowa is one of six states that allow same-sex marriages. The others are Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont, plus Washington, D.C.
Branstad has denied that his selection of Dandekar last month was related to his desire to remove a Democratic roadblock to his agenda, which besides gay marriage includes extending abortion restrictions and reducing business taxes.
Although Dandekar wasn't among the 17 applicants for the $85,000-a-year job, Branstad spokesman Tim Albrecht said the governor "recruited her for this position because of her immense knowledge and talent."
Dandekar has no experience specifically related to utility regulation, but she and Branstad have noted that she has a chemistry degree.
"I have a background in the sciences, and this was an exciting opportunity," she said. "That is why I resigned and accepted a position on the utilities board."
Democrats have laughed off the governor's denials that he was using a government appointment to achieve his political goals.
"Of course he is," said Ron Parker, a top staffer for Senate Democrats. "It would be silly to say otherwise."
The GOP has a narrow voter registration edge over Democrats in the district — 16,008 Republicans to 15,745 Democrats — but both parties are outnumbered by the 19,960 voters who registered without declaring a party preference.
Already, the seat has drawn national attention.
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's wife, Ann, recently spoke to about 50 people at Golding campaign headquarters, and White House hopeful Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., has offered to campaign for Golding.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz, chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, spoke of the Iowa Senate race during a recent trip to Iowa, saying, "We intend to see that Liz Mathis has all the resources she needs to be successful."
National gay and lesbians groups so far haven't announced plans to campaign for the Democrat, but Troy Price, executive director of the gay-rights organization One Iowa, said his colleagues were "doing everything we can to make sure people understand the issues."
Although Golding says she would support referring a gay marriage ban to voters and Mathis opposes such a move, neither candidate has made the issue a key part of her campaign.
Both said they would focus on the economy and jobs, reflecting Iowa's stubborn unemployment rate of about 6 percent. That's far below the 9.1 percent national rate but is the highest Iowa has seen in decades.
"I have not had a single person ask me about gay marriage," Golding said.
Mathis said her experience was similar, with voters expressing worries about boosting the economy and creating jobs.
"How do you help businesses grow and how do you train skilled workers and in what area do you train them?" Mathis asked.
If Mathis is elected, Democrats will retain their majority, and Senate Majority Leader Michael Gronstal will probably be able to keep his vow of not taking up a proposed amendment to outlaw gay marriage, which he has repeatedly equated to "putting discrimination into the state's constitution."
A victory by Golding would make that promise tougher for Gronstal to keep, but he still might be able to hold out. The 2004 election left Democrats and Republicans tied for control of the Iowa Senate, forcing the parties to work out a power-sharing arrangement in which leaders of both had to agree before an issue was debated.
Secretary of the Senate Mike Marshall said it would be up to state senators to reach another deal if control were split again.
Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, has refused to discuss the possibility of sharing control of the chamber, and he has pushed back against assertions that the election would be about large, statewide issues.
"I think everyone is trying to turn this into higher political stakes and a referendum on this or that," Gronstal said. "In the end, this is a race about two people and their connection to the community."
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
