Harkin expects Conlin to face Grassley
Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin said he expects Des Moines lawyer Roxanne Conlin to be the Democrats' U.S. Senate nominee to face five-term Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley this fall.
Harkin, a Democrat, said the comments were not to be construed as an endorsement of Conlin, who is in a three-way contest for the June 8 primary.
"It looks like Roxanne Conlin will be our nominee," Harkin said in a telephone interview with The Des Moines Register. "She's been to 66 counties. That's pretty impressive. She's taking it very seriously. She has the ability to raise sufficient funds to put on a very competitive campaign."
Conlin is running along with Clarence lawyer Tom Fiegen and Fairfield transportation official Bob Krause. Fiegen and Krause are also former state legislators.
Conlin raised more than $600,000 in the last quarter of 2009, having decided to run in October, and had more than $500,000 on hand at the end of the year. Fiegen and Krause each had less than $1,000 in their accounts, according to campaign finance reports.
Grassley ended the year with more than $5 million in his campaign account.
Source: Des Moines Register
