Losing a race doesn’t mean you will lose again

After nearly 25 years of writing about campaigns, I should know better than to take press releases too seriously. In a profession that rewards speed over quality analysis, I know press secretaries and communications directors have jobs to do and often rely on pithy one-liners to try to win the day. We're supposed to look away and attribute it to business as usual. In other words, hate the game and not the player. But a recent news release from the Iowa Republican Party was so audacious, hypocritical and devoid of any historical context that I just couldn't forgive and forget.

- Nathan L. Gonzales, Tribune News Service

“Two-time loser Christina Bohannan is back, trying for strike three in a crowded primary where even her own party knows she can't win,” the chairman of the Iowa GOP said in a June 17 release. “Iowans have already rejected her twice, and they'll do it again.” Bohannan had just announced her third challenge to GOP Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in the Ist District, which stretches from outside Des Moines to take in the state's southeastern quarter. A former Democratic state legislator, Bohannan lost to Miller-Meeks by 7 points in 2022 and by less than a quarter of a percentage point (or 799 votes) in 2024. While it’s certainly fair to go after Bohannan for her policy positions and party affiliation, Iowa Republicans, more than anyone, should know that attacking someone for losing a race is silly. And highlighting previous losses as a clear sign that a candidate isn’t going to win in the future is ridiculous.