A Frontrunner Emerges

Last evening several members of The Iowa Brigade/Iowa Defense Alliance were in attendance at Bob Vander Plaats event at Arnolds Park on the shores of Lake Okoboji. We had volunteered to help set the event up and sign people in as they came through the doors. It would be redundant for me to provide a recount of the event as I live blogged the event last night right here on Iowa Defense Alliance. Instead I will focus on some of the side stories that came from this event.

Early on I was concerned that the event would have dismal attendance considering the timing and location. The event was held in the middle of the week in the northwest corner of the state. Not exactly a recipe for an earth shattering turnout. My reasoning was that not many people would be willing to drive four or five hours for a two hour event. It quickly became evident that my fears were unfounded as the Majestic was rapidly filled beyond the hopes of the events organizers.

As more and more people filed into the pavilion we quickly realized that more chairs were needed as it rapidly became standing room only. People were filing in and filtering to the various chairs and tables set up for attendees. At this time I was helping to sign people in. It was amazing to hear some of the stories of attendees as the casually mentioned how far they driven in order to be in attendance. There were people from Fort Madison, Council Bluffs, Ottumwa, and even Illinois. Sure I myself had driven almost five hours to be at the event, but I thought that I would be in the minority, which was clearly not the case.

One of the chief criticisms that people have had of Vander Plaats and his campaign was that he could not raise the money necessary to be a credible gubernatorial candidate. I have always felt that this criticism was more of a myth than anything else. And last nights events clearly proved that as the Vander Plaats campaign raised over $100,000 in just one day. And this was before the evening event began. I know that number continued to grow as attendees continued to write checks to Team VP as they entered the Pavilion. It will be interesting to see how much that number rises after the checks and cash from the door are figured in.

One thing that has become abundantly clear is that Bob Vander Plaats has become the frontrunner in the race for the Republican nomination for Governor. His association with Mike Huckabee is and will continue to be an asset for his campaign, especially considering Huckabee clearly stated last night that he will campaign for Bob Vander Plaats. It is now up to Vander Plaats to build upon the success of last nights event. And if the reaction of the assembled crowd was any indication he can do just that.