"Never say never" is a cliche used not only in the sports world, but in the political world, too. Since former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad recently has been uttering it when asked whether he'd fire up the bandwagon and seek a fifth term as governor, the people who've been racking up miles on their personal vehicles in hopes of securing the 2010 GOP nomination for governor were asked about the prospect of a Branstad race this past week.
Last Friday, Todd Dorman of The Cedar Rapids Gazette offered readers of his blog a chance to vote in "Nostalgia" Primaries to come up with a "Ticket for the Ages!" The results are in, as Dorman reports on his blog:
Retrolection 2009 – Democrat Harold Hughes and Republican Robert Ray were the big winners in last week’s retro gubernatorial primaries.
Hughes took 48 percent of the vote, holding off Tom Vilsack with 26 percent. Herschel Loveless and Ansel Briggs tied for third. Culver was 5th.
On the GOP side, Ray took 40 percent to Branstad’s 29. Samuel Kirkwood got 15 percent.
That sets up a dream Ray-Hughes match up.
There are so many ways to analyze these "results" — if one could take an online poll seriously. Some might argue it confirms "The Real Governor" Robert Ray has always been much more beloved than "Boy Governor" Branstad, despite Branstad's 16 year tenure as governor (Iowa's longest!) compared to Ray's mere 14 years as governor.
On the Democratic side, Vilsack was second and Culver was fifth? Harold Hughes was a towering figure in Iowa politics, but the keyword in this sentence is the word was. Hughes died in 1996 at the age of 72.
Cast your votes in Dorman's "Retroelection 2009" here.
But remember kids, as Terry Branstad always said, the only poll that counts is the one taken on Election Day.
About O.Kay Henderson
Kay is a founding member of the Radio Iowa network newsroom. In 1994, she became the network’s news director. She’s a featured reporter and commentator on Iowa Public Television’s “Iowa Press,” and the 2002 recipient of the Shelley Award.
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