DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa House District 28 representing Adel, Van Meter and the southwest portion of West Des Moines, will have a tight race in the upcoming election.
Only one Democrat, Laura Snider, has entered the election for this seat, giving her a smooth sailing toward November's general election. But two Republicans, incumbent Rep. David Young and Chad Brewbaker, will battle for the GOP nomination on June 4 in Iowa's primary election.
Snider is an author, mother, Drake Law School graduate of 2009 and an assistant Greene County attorney. Snider has spent a majority of her judicial career as a public defender and prosecutor. Her husband works at Drake University in the journalism department.
"What we need is some other program like drug courts," Snider explained when asked about how she would translate her work as an attorney to the Statehouse. "Yeah, if they fail drug court, they are probably going to end up in prison. But that gives them the opportunity to be rehabilitated and be back in the community and have a productive life."
RELATED: House quickly rejects Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's effort to remove Speaker Johnson from office
On Friday, Snider shared her campaign goals with Local 5 and why she believes it's time for a change in the party that represents this district.
The 28th House District has remained controlled by Republicans for the past few elections. Young won the election in 2022, and Republican Jon Thorup won the district in the 2018 and 2020 elections.
"This state seems to get more and more extreme with its policies toward school, towards women's reproductive freedoms," Snider told Local 5's Connor O'Neal. "My district is purple, my district is more moderate, and I think taking extreme positions is not consistent with what our district believes, with what our district wants."
Snider's main platform positions include expanding access to mental health resources, enacting gun policy legislation aimed to curb gun violence and protecting reproductive rights.
"Some of the conceal and carry changes have made things unconformable for prosecutors and law enforcement as well... I think with gun policies I think it is really important that people obtain permits to carry concealed weapons," Snider said.
Moving forward over the next few months, Snider said she plans to continue to host events for her campaign, knocking on doors and finalizing hiring a campaign manager.