DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart is seeking the role again, which is a two year term, after first winning the internal election in 2023.

Iowa Democrats are coming off an election cycle where the party lost it’s already thin numbers in both the Iowa House and Iowa Senate. The party failed to flip any of the four Iowa congressional seats from red to blue.

“I will tell you that it is really hard to envision what is next for Iowa Democrats,” said Chair Hart in a statement after the November 2024 losses.

The party is holding a meeting on Saturday in Ankeny to have the Iowa Democrat Central Committee vote on who should be the party spearhead. Based off of recent election performances, there are some challengers for the spot.

One is Alexandra Nikolas-Dermody from Davenport. Nikolas-Dermody has been involved in organizing political campaigns in multiple states. She is currently the Vice Chair of the Iowa Democratic Progressive Caucus, which means she is on the central committee that votes for a new chair.

“I had been mulling over the decision to run for IDP chair since the beginning of November,” said Nikolas-Dermody. “I do greatly appreciate the work Chair Hart has done. I don’t agree with everything and, I do, there there has been a lot left to be desired.”

Nikolas-Dermody said there needs to be an investment again in young voters and getting them engaged in the party. She also doesn’t like the lack of democratic candidates running in every corner of the state, regardless of how conservative of an area may be.

“We need to invest in every election, and we don’t do that right now … there is no one running for any of these down ballot offices,” said Nikolas-Dermody. “They’re [IDP] repeating the same mistakes again and again. And it’s time for change. It’s time for a different perspective. I mean, you can only beat a dead horse so long before there’s nothing left.”

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