Independent Candidates File to Run for Office

Former Des Moines school-board member Jonathan Narcisse on Thursday filed the paperwork to get on the November 2 general-election ballot as an "Iowa Party" candidate for governor with running mate Richard Marlar. The deadline to file third-party nomination papers is Friday.

In addition to Democrats and Republicans already on the ballot, Narcisse will join Libertarian and Socialist Workers Party candidates for governor.

There are also Libertarian candidates for Iowa secretary of state and the U.S. Senate. In the First Congressional District, two third-party candidates are running: Libertarian Rob Petsche of Manchester, and independent Jason Faulkner of Maquoketa.

State Fair Attracts Handful of Potential 2012 Presidential Candidates

A number of prominent state and national political figures are attending the 2010 Iowa State Fair, including a number of rumored 2012 Republican presidential hopefuls.

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia, and former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania are among the potential 2012 presidential candidates who will see fairgoers during the 11-day run of the fair, which ends August 22.

Pawlenty was the guest Thursday on two live radio shows at the fair: Jan Michelson in the Morning on WHO news radio and The Big Show with Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey. Meanwhile, Gingrich had a visit planned for Friday, while Santorum will be at the Republicans' fair booth on Wednesday.

"As an Iowa politician, it's an important place to be because you've got 100,000 Iowans here," said Northey, who is up for re-election in November.

Democrats have attracted some heavy hitters of their own to the fair this year, including Democratic National Committee Chair and former Virginia Governor Tim Kaine. He'll be at the Iowa Democratic Party's booth in the Varied Industries Building on Tuesday afternoon. Joining Kaine will be U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, along with Governor Chet Culver, Iowa Democratic Party Chair Sue Dvorsky, and Democratic state-secretary-of-agriculture nominee Francis Thicke.

Culver and Lieutenant Governor Patty Judge will also take part in a number of events at the fair, as will Republican gubernatorial nominee Branstad and his running mate, Senator Kim Reynolds. State Auditor David Vaudt will spend a lot of time at the Republicans' fair booth, as will GOP secretary-of-state nominee Matt Schultz and GOP state-treasurer nominee Dave Jamison.

Some major politicians seem to have made the fair less of a priority this year. U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) made a brief appearance Thursday -- he's not up for re-election this year -- while U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) won't be taking part in the Des Moines Register's political-soapbox event, despite running for re-election this year. However, Grassley will take part in the Governor's Charity Steer Show at 4 p.m. Saturday and will also meet people as his schedule permits throughout the fair's run, said Grassley campaign spokesperson Eric Woolson.

U.S. Representative Steve King (R-Iowa) also didn't commit to the speak at the soapbox but will spend about an hour at the Republicans' booth on Saturday.

Numerous political candidates have booths set up in the Varied Industries Building, including Democratic Attorney General Tom Miller, Democratic Secretary of State Michael Mauro, and Democratic State Treasurer Mike Fitzgerald.

Elder Culver Stumps for Son at Fair

Former U.S. Senator John Culver, the father of Iowa's incumbent governor, on Thursday told IowaPolitics.com that he doesn't believe Branstad has an electoral edge over his son.

"I think he's not at all in trouble as long as the record of his administration is known in the course of the campaign," the elder Culver said during a visit to the Iowa State Fair. "I think there have been extraordinarily important measures that have been enacted through his leadership with I-JOBS, the Iowa Power Fund, and a lot of other initiatives."

John Culver is in the state to campaign with his son, with stops planned for Mason City, Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Iowa City, Charles City, Dubuque, and Des Moines. The governor's sister is on the campaign trail, as well. The elder Culver said that what his son has done in the areas of education and health care will improve the quality of life in the state.

"I think they're really starting to turn around," Culver said of the effort to get that story out. "It was slow getting started but frankly, I think things are looking good. If we can get the campaign on the issues that Chet has accomplished as governor for the state and the importance and the value of that, I think it's going to go very well."

Culver also said the negativity in the gubernatorial race is unfortunate, much worse than what he remembers during his stint as a politician. "I think there's been a distraction in the campaign," he said. "We've been diverted to all those other issues which to me are so peripheral and silly that they distract from the quality of life people should expect from their political leaders."

This weekly summary comes from IowaPolitics.com, an online government and politics news service. Reporter Andrew Duffelmeyer and other correspondents contributed to this report.

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