How Can Dems Win Back Rural America? Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren Agree on the Answer

Last weekend, presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) alighted upon Iowa to talk about his plans to revitalize the rural economy and support farmers. His strategy? A wide-ranging rural policy plan that promises “Roosevelt-style trust-busting laws to stop monopolization of markets and break-up existing massive agribusinesses.” Weeks earlier, Sanders’ rival, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) made her own Iowa trip to issue an equally fiery farm policy statement vowing to break up the handful of companies that dominate Big Agriculture.

Why do these prominent Democratic presidential candidates think they can appeal to Heartland voters by focusing on corporate consolidation? The 2018 race for Iowa’s fourth Congressional district might hold a clue. Then, first-time Democratic candidate JD Scholten shook the Iowa political scene by nearly defeating Rep. Steve King (R.-Iowa), losing by just 3.4 percentage points. King had cakewalked his previous seven races, winning each by at least 20 points. But when it came time for his reelection, Scholten came within an inch of beating a staunch Donald Trump ally in a state the president had won by nearly 10 points just two years before.

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