By Kathie Obradovich, Iowa Capital Dispatch
Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Mark Smith announced Wednesday he will not run for re-election to the position.
Smith, a former state legislator from Marshalltown, won the chairmanship in February after the former chairman, Troy Price, resigned in the wake of a national furor over problems with reporting the results of the Iowa Caucuses.
Iowa Democrats suffered disappointments in the November elections, including Republican Joni Ernst’s re-election, the defeat of Democratic U.S. Rep. Abby Finkenauer and the loss of Democrat-held seats in the Iowa House.
Smith, in a statement, cited a need for the party to rebuild.
“Despite the statewide results on Election Day, I continue to believe that the values of the Democratic Party are the values of Iowans. It is also clear that our party must rebuild, retool, and reenergize moving forward. That said, I have decided not to seek re-election as chair and I will continue to serve the party until a new chair is elected in January 2021,” Smith said.
Smith expressed pride over party accomplishments this year, including a vote-by-mail and early-vote program that he said “brought in a record number of early votes, including 117,567 more Democratic absentee ballots than Republicans.”
The new leader will be elected by party’s State Central Committee.
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