Letter To The Editor: Campaigning To Represent District 80

Jared Godby (I) for Iowa House District 80

Jared Godby (I) for Iowa House District 80

Editors Note: The views and opinions expressed in this editorial are not necessarily the views or opinions of Oskaloosa News.

I’ve been campaigning to represent District 80 in the Iowa house for several months now and I would like to take a moment to write on the idea of representation. A representative, as the name suggests, is someone who acts on behalf of another person or group of persons. Ever since the Revolution and our independence from the British monarchy we have taken the full responsibility of government upon ourselves as citizens. For practical purposes, we have chosen to govern indirectly through representatives. It is then the duty of the representative to consider the opinions, interests, and judgments of all the citizens in their district prior to making any decisions in government.

To be able to consider the opinions, interests, and judgments of the citizens of their district, a representative must first gather these views by regularly interacting with the citizens he or she represents. In this way, a good representative becomes a reflection of the values and judgments of the citizens in their district and will more accurately represent them in their government.

However, what we often see today are representatives more concerned with representing their own philosophy or their party interests rather than those of the citizens they are there to represent. In some ways it is not entirely their fault. Political parties can pressure a representative to vote with the party rather than accurately represent their district. They do this by threatening to pull legislation that would help their district, give them less campaign funding in the next election, or even get rid of them entirely by finding someone more loyal to the party to defeat them in the next primary election. As a result, representatives are prone to being swept up in the “us vs. them” nature of party politics rather than performing as a representative of the citizens they were sent there to work for.

Parties have their place in politics. They are great ways to organize volunteers, to assist in fundraising, and as places to talk about issues of the day. However, political parties are a means to an end and should not be the end in themselves. When we become more concerned with our party winning or looking good for the next election than we do getting things done for the benefit of Iowa as a whole then parties become a hindrance to our political system and not a benefit.

I have chosen to run as an independent candidate this election because I don’t want a political party or any other interest group to come between myself and the citizens I would be sent to Des Moines to represent. Running as a nonpartisan candidate not only allows but requires me to listen to every citizen, regardless of party affiliation, and care about what they have to say. In other words, it allows me to see the people of District 80 as the self-governing citizens they are rather than just voters during elections.

As always, please feel free to contact me by phone at (641) 895-8111 or e-mail at Jared@GodbyForIowa.com with any questions, comments, or concerns.

Posted by on Oct 24 2014. Filed under Editorial. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Comments are closed

         

Search Archive

Search by Date
Search by Category
Search with Google
Log in | Copyright by Oskaloosa News