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Jackson writes: "Elizabeth Warren, the populist U.S. senator from Massachusetts, is joining the roster of potential Democratic presidential candidates to make the trek to the Hawkeye State during the 2016 cycle."

Senator Elizabeth Warren will be in Iowa on Sunday. (photo: Getty Images)
Senator Elizabeth Warren will be in Iowa on Sunday. (photo: Getty Images)


Elizabeth Warren Heads to Iowa

By Sharyn Jackson, The Des Moines Register

18 October 14

 

lizabeth Warren, the populist U.S. senator from Massachusetts, is joining the roster of potential Democratic presidential candidates to make the trek to the Hawkeye State during the 2016 cycle.

She is campaigning in Iowa on Sunday for Bruce Braley, who is caught in a tight race against Republican Joni Ernst to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin.

Though Warren has repeatedly stated that she will not run for president in 2016, political visits to Iowa rarely happen in a vacuum.

"It's not like she's just throwing a dart at a dartboard and happened to hit Iowa," said Christopher Larimer, a political science professor at the University of Northern Iowa. "She must have an eye on 2016."

Hillary Clinton was the headliner, along with former President Bill Clinton, at Harkin's final Steak Fry last month. Vice President Joe Biden came to Iowa days later for the Nuns on the Bus tour. Both are thought to be weighing runs in the Democratic playing field for a presidential nomination.

Warren's visit to Iowa is one item on a checklist of activities for future presidential candidates. In a departure from her previous books on law and personal finance, Warren recently penned "A Fighting Chance," a memoir detailing her journey to Washington.

"She said she's not running, but we see her doing things similar to what many future candidates do, so we don't think she's ruled it out," said Erica Sagrans, campaign manager of Ready for Warren, a PAC that is laying the groundwork for a Warren run in 2016.

"This is a good sign that she's heading to Iowa," Sagrans said.

The PAC has called Warren "Iowa's ideal candidate." They have linked her in ideology to other Iowa populists, like Harkin and Braley.

Warren is very popular with the party's liberal wing, said Dianne Bystrom, director of the Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University. That's important, because liberals make up "a significant portion of Iowa Democrats who participate in the caucuses," Bystrom said. "Thus, if she decides to run for president in 2016, Senator Warren may siphon votes from Hillary Clinton or other Democrats."

However, Warren seems to be focused for now "on electing Democrats to the U.S. Senate on her economic populist platform of taking on Wall Street, expanding Social Security benefits and reducing student loan debt," Bystrom said. "If she does not run for president in 2016, her endorsement of another candidate will be important to the progressive wing of the Democratic Party in Iowa and nationally."

A former Harvard law professor, Warren's message has largely focused on economic inequality and consumer protection.

In an email to supporters, Warren said she would campaign on Braley's behalf because he "shares our values" to help working families.

But whether her support will help Braley win in a crucial race that could determine which party controls the Senate is a long shot, UNI's Larimer said.

"She's very popular with activists, but I get the sense that activists were already going to vote for Braley. Beyond that, she's not a Hillary Clinton, who is known beyond that group," he said.

Clinton holds a commanding lead of 53 percent support from likely 2016 Democratic caucusgoers, according to a Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll released this week. Warren is in second place, with 10 percent.

A majority of Iowa Democrats, 52 percent, say their political beliefs align more with Clinton than with Warren, at 26 percent.

But among more liberal Democrats, the margin narrows. Warren's favorability is also high among those with a college degree and those age 55 and over.

Ray Johnson, 67, a retired guidance counselor from Clear Lake, cites Warren's economic policies as the reason he would choose her first among Democratic hopefuls. "I get the feeling that she thinks ordinary Americans are the ones that are not getting the breaks," Johnson said.

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