Partnership Hosts All 10 Candidates at Virtual Candidate Forums in 2020

Each election cycle, the Greater Des Moines Partnership hosts Candidate Forums for individuals running for elected office, with the goal to connect the general public to those running for office and provide an opportunity for attendees to ask important questions of the candidates if elected. This series is hosted in partnership with Young Professionals Connection (YPC) and the Greater Des Moines Partnership Leadership Institute.

Virtual Candidate Forums

Having the forums moved to a virtual format this year meant easier access to candidates, allowing us to host all 10 Democratic and Republican candidates running for Congressional office. As the YPC Civic Chair, I had the unique opportunity to submit a question that was asked of all candidates. On behalf of YPC, each candidate was asked what proposals and ideas they had for young professionals with student loan debt. As tuition costs continue to rise, many college students are forced to take out more student debt. This issue directly impacts young people.

Each candidate spoke about the severity of the issue and offered their solutions for potential policy proposals if they are elected. In addition to discussing student debt solutions and policy approaches, the policy forums touched on a wide variety of topics impacting young voters across the state including health care, climate change, taxes and ways to ensure DSM and Iowa are welcoming in order to attract and retain young talent.

Election 2020

If you were unable to attend the candidate forums and are still conducting research prior to voting we encourage you to check out Vote Smart’s digital information sheet to learn more about all candidates running for Congressional office in Iowa. After Election Day, we invite you to stay involved with future events. YPC has opportunities to engage with professional networking, career development, civic engagement, serving our community and more!

Thanks to the candidates for providing their time and answering our questions. A special thanks to all that attended the Candidate Forums to better educate themselves on the 2020 candidates and their policy proposals. We hope you use what you learned at these forums when voting today!

The Partnership's Public Policy team engages with local, state and federal officials to create public policy that generates economic growth, business prosperity and talent development in Greater Des Moines (DSM). The Partnership is a nonpartisan organization.

Young Professionals Connection (YPC) aims to attract and retain young professionals in Greater Des Moines (DSM) by connecting emerging leaders to each other and to the community through social, civic, charitable and professional development endeavors. Learn how you can get involved.