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‘I want to redefine leadership in the state’

An interview with Democratic lieutenant governor candidate Eric Van Lancker

Tama Town Hall with VanLancker: Lieutenant candidate Eric VanLancker makes it a point to visit with every town hall attendee to hear their opinions to better understand the challenges facing Tama County and Iowa. Photo contributed by the DeJear for Governor campaign.

Alongside Deidre DeJear’s campaign for governor is her lieutenant governor candidate Eric Van Lancker. They both visited with Tama County citizens at a town hall held in the Meskwaki Bingo Casino Hotel on Oct. 22.

Van Lancker has previously run for Secretary of State, so when he got the call to run alongside Deidre, he took a moment to consider the position.

“I didn’t know I was up for this position until Deidre called me one morning asking me to consider it. It took a couple of days for my wife and me to talk about it, but the answer was in front of us all the time. It was always yes,” he said. “Deidre and I share a passion. I want to continue to be a part of the solution in many areas in Iowa. Listening to Deidre on the campaign trail, I liked her message and how she was going about doing these things. Talking and meeting with Iowans everywhere, Republicans, Democrats, and independents alike. She knows, as I do, that we have much common ground, and we can work together to come up with solutions.”

Van Lancker has been an auditor for Clinton County for 14 years, and he’s always been dedicated to serving the voters of Clinton and Iowa.

“It was imperative for me when I entered this job 14 years ago. That’s why I’ve thrown myself into that, to ensure that we’re all running great elections for all the voters across the state. When we see attempts to make it more difficult for our voters to get access to a ballot, legislation that passed in 2021 made it more difficult for people to vote absentee by closing the voting window to 20 days,” he said. “For those who want their ballot mailed, first-class mail takes 5 to 7 days or longer. And my concern with that is that if someone wants to vote by mail, we need time to get the ballot to them. They need time to vote on the ballot and get it back in the mail to us. It’s troublesome because if voters need to remember to sign their envelopes, they won’t have time to remedy that. If you’re a snowbird out of the state or a college student out of the state, if you make a mistake, you’re almost going to be locked out of voting in this election. I find that appalling because my job ensures that all my neighbors can vote. Those election laws make it harder for Iowans to vote. I would like to see this addressed and fixed.”

He also asked those who plan to vote in 2022 to be aware of the new rules and regulations and ensure they follow them.

“This will be the first time some Iowa voters face some of these new deadlines and rules. I’d ask those folks to make a plan on how they’re going to vote. With redistricting and re-precincting at the county level, folks may be in a new precinct and have to vote at a different polling location,” he said. “Call your county auditor. I know 98 of them, and they’re all willing to help a voter figure out if they’re registered and share with them the options on how and where they can vote. Do make a plan to vote. Your voice counts, and we want to hear it.”

With his experience in county-level government, VanLancker plans to take them to Des Moines with him.

​​“I’m committed to representing all Iowans. That’s my bumper sticker. It’s what I do here in Clinton County, and that’s because people know I’m committed to all Clinton County residents. So I look forward to taking that to the state level,” he said.

Along the campaign trail, Van Lancker and his running partner DeJear have made it a point to put Iowans first.

“We put people ahead of politics. We want to come up with solutions that help all Iowans. We want to represent all Iowans, Democrats, Republicans, and independents,” he said. “Because that’s what makes the state great when we all work together for similar solutions. A pure representation of Iowans is what is needed in Des Moines again.”

He knows they’re running an underdog campaign, and he also knows it won’t be easy to govern with the current partisan divide in both state and national politics.

“I’m not naive. I know this will be difficult. Getting folks to the table and finding solutions we can all work with will always be in the best interest of Iowans. Extremism is not the solution. We know that. It’ll not be easy, but we’ll bring everyone together. It’s going to be a lot of work, but as my partner, Deidre, says, ‘Iowa’s worth the work,'” he said.

A cornerstone in Van Lancker’s character and his career is teamwork.

“I’m looking forward to working with everyone. I’ll talk to everyone about every topic and see where we can find common ground. [We’re] trying to pull us all together for collective solutions. Because that’s what creates change that will be more meaningful for a longer time as opposed to extreme changes that are only favored by one party, I would like to change that attitude,” he said. “I’ve done it before, for 14 years. I’ve been to the capital almost every year to work on legislation, whether elections or something that affects county policy. We were able to sit around a table, whether democrat or republican, to talk about these issues and find the best answer for the folks we represent. That’s gone away in just these 14 years. We’ll all be better if we get back to that table together.”

One of his biggest goals, he said, is to “redefine leadership” in the state of Iowa.

“I want to redefine leadership in the state. Again, I go back to 14 years ago. I could talk to republican and democratic legislators and have a respectful discussion where my opinions were considered. Whether they were taken up or not, I felt like they were considered, but we don’t have that today because of the extremism,” he said. “I don’t know why I would be the person that would be able to effect that change to bring us all back to the middle, back to the table, and recognize that we’re all neighbors here. But that’s my personal mission, to effect that change. I don’t know why I think I could do that, but I would like to try. It will probably never be pure unity, getting us back to representing all Iowans, that’s the uphill climb here right now, but I’m looking forward to seeing that happen.”

Van Lancker stands behind Deidre’s campaign for better public education in Iowa, as the Democratic ticket has drawn a sharp contrast between their plan and the governor’s push for private school scholarships or vouchers.

“I was so happy when I saw funding public schools was a major plank for Deidre to talk about for several reasons. The easiest reason is that my wife started her 31st year of elementary education in a public school, so I’ve had a front-row seat to what’s going on in our education system here in the state,” he said. “It’s interesting to see how those things have changed over recent years. I was a public school kid through college. When I graduated high school, Iowa was the nation’s #1 public school system. People knew that, and we were proud of that. Now, unfortunately, we’ve been sliding down that national scale. I want those opportunities for our grandchildren that we had when we were recognized as the best in the nation.”

Education and healthcare, he added, are cornerstones of building a brighter future for Iowa and growing the population — especially among those who grew up here and might look to other states for better opportunities after college.

“Deidre’s education plan for a limitless future includes other things than funding [like] the best-trained educators. We want to bring back the student loan forgiveness program for teachers who teach in public schools for five years. Also, ensure we have a mental health professional in every public school building in the state,” Van Lancker said. “My partner, [Deidre], says we need to codify Roe here in Iowa to protect women’s rights and expand access to healthcare and mental health. We’re losing rural hospitals and clinics. We don’t have enough doctors or OBGYNs. We have women who need to drive two hours or more to get to a hospital for prenatal care. That’s a concern. That’s a concern for the sustainability of those rural communities as well. We need to figure out how we can serve our rural areas with healthcare and mental healthcare.”

When asked about Iowa renewable energies, VanLancker had this to say.

“Diversification is essential. In Clinton County, we don’t have wind turbines yet, but we’ve already started working on a large solar operation starting in a year. All of this is a larger package that we need to consider diversifying how and where we get energy,” he said. “We also need to look at how it plays into the larger picture here in Iowa [like] conservation measures. The county should have a say in their landscape. We’ve been going through this public solar process, and it’s been a local control decided issue. Good local input is important when we talk about solar and wind.”

In a lighter moment, VanLancker recounted a few shenanigans he and DeJear have had along their campaign trail.

“We all had a day together at the State Fair, and we got invited to flip pork products on a scorching grill on the hottest day at the fair. To recently wandering the streets of Bettendorf knock [on] doors trying to figure out where we were,” he said. “We’ve certainly had a great time going around the state together and meeting folks where they’re at. We’ve had many smiles along the way, both in our team and with the folks we’re meeting. That’s because they see Deidre and me as a team that will represent Iowans.

VanLancker sees himself as a public servant who has made political promises and kept his mission for over 14 years.

“I don’t have anything quilted into a pillow. But when I ran for county auditor in 2008, I made one campaign promise, and I still hold onto that today. I promise to serve with respect and integrity,” he said. “And when I am elected as lieutenant governor, along with Deidre as governor, I will continue to keep that promise.”