9 possible reasons for Kim Reynolds being the most unpopular governor
After being re-elected to the Iowa House of Representatives in 2009, I met newly elected state Sen. Kim Reynolds; some of us bipartisan “veteran” legislators were giving advice to newly elected delegates. My next interaction with Reynolds was after being appointed by Gov. Terry Branstad and confirmed by Senate, 49-0, to serve as vice chair of the Iowa Board of Parole. When I was promoted to board chair, I met quite frequently with Branstad and Lt. Gov. Reynolds, apprising them of the progressive measures the Board of Parole was undertaking.
Two recent surveys (Oct. 31 and Nov. 27) by Morning Consult have identified Reynolds as America’s "most unpopular governor." Writes Morning Consult: “Her unpopularity increased partly because of a surge in negative sentiment among independent and Republican voters during a year in which she signed a strict anti-abortion law and took a lashing from former President Donald Trump.”
What has happened to Iowa since Reynolds assumed the office of governor on May 24, 2017?
The Iowa Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Reynolds violated Iowa’s public records law, causing Iowa’s citizens to fork over $174,108.75 in attorney fees to settle three lawsuits. Thomas Story, ACLU of Iowa attorney, said, “Nobody’s above the law. It starts at the top.”
During the fiscal year 2014 to fiscal year 2023 time period when Reynolds served as Iowa’s lieutenant governor or governor, over $108 million has been spent (Iowa taxpayers' hard-earned-money) to settle lawsuit claims, according to the Cedar Rapids Gazette. Her and her GOP legislators’ and employees’ actions have cost Iowa citizens dearly.
Iowa ranks 49th in the nation for its ratio of inspectors to care facilities, per the US Senate Special Committee on Aging.
Families for Better Care ranked Iowa nursing homes as 37th best in America; staffing shortages exist in 42% of Iowa nursing homes.
Thousands of Iowa K-12 students are homeschooled. Reynolds has blessed excluding them from curriculum standards, required learning assessments, abuse record checks on parent-teachers and attendance monitoring. Accountability is void.
Iowa ranks No. 29 for public education funding. Despite Iowa desperately needing to improve K-12 public school funding, Reynolds and the GOP-controlled Legislature allocated $107 million to pay for private school vouchers, which could result in a potential loss of $54 million in state aid to public schools from students leaving public districts. Note: 62% of Iowans opposed the school choice law, according to the Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll.
Iowa ranked as the 12th-most-obese state in 2022; Iowa’s state House, state Senate and the governor passed legislation tightening rules for the SNAP program, which helps lower-income families afford more nutritional foods and requires an asset test, potentially kicking thousands of recipients off the SNAP program.
The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services has failed to comply with 50 of 65 (77%) standards in a settlement with the Justice Department in operating the Glenwood Resource Center for people with disabilities.
Iowa has consistently ranked near the bottom of the country for staffing psychiatric beds.
These are just some examples of Reynolds governing a state that ranks 30th in population. Imagine Reynolds as vice president or a member of Congress or holding a Cabinet position.
Many would argue Reynolds has met the long-held and revered business definition of the Peter Principle: “rising to a level of respective incompetence,” rightly earning the label as America’s most unpopular governor.
Doris J. Kelley of Cedar Falls is a former state representatives and former chair of the Iowa Board of Parole.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Kim Reynolds is the most unpopular governor. These facts might be why.
