Rose Mary Pratt is a native of Des Moines and has been involved in Polk County and Iowa Democratic Party politics for fifty plus years. She is a former secondary education teacher in Minnesota, Council Bluffs, and the Des Moines area. She worked on the administrative staff of Governor Tom Vilsack and as a Legislative Secretary in the Iowa House of Representatives. She has volunteered and worked in many campaigns and remains committed to mentoring young people who want to be in politics and run for public office. She and her husband reside in Des Moines, and she is a proud mother and grandmother.
As a long-time Democratic party activist, I’ve met many candidates running for office over the years and have worked in campaigns and been involved at a grassroots level in Iowa elections. I have given my time and money, and tried to encourage and mentor those who are committed and know why they want to run for public office. I have been fortunate to work with and for people who believe they can make a difference. I love the idea that when I see good people run, and win or lose, I am still glad to have had the chance to be a part of their campaign.
I have had the honor of working for Governor Tom Vilsack and alongside Democratic and Republican lawmakers at the state capitol. I feel my activism should continue and I have to stay involved and work to find and support candidates whose qualities and abilities to lead are evident. However, more significantly is the candidate’s desire to be of public service and in the public arena at this time of polarization and disillusionment with government.
I believe the country’s future depends on electing strong and visionary candidates who give us hope. I am endorsing Jennifer Konfrst for Iowa’s third Congressional district. I am confident she is the best candidate to represent our district and can win.
I’ve known Jennifer Konfrst since she was a student in the Johnston School District. Her parents, Mike and Betty Glover, are long-time friends and lived in our precinct in northwest Des Moines. As she was growing up, Jennifer was full of spirit, energy, and very involved in school activities. Her personality and drive carried her through and is reflected in her development as a politically savvy, idealistic, committed, and passionate Democratic leader in the Iowa House of Representatives.
Jennifer has demonstrated a strong work ethic throughout her career. Her authenticity shines through in personal conversations and small groups, and was especially apparent when she worked for Iowa PBS and knew how to reach people through television.
As a teacher, she connects well with her students at Drake University. People quickly notice that Jennifer Konfrst does not take them for granted and cares enough to extend herself and do something. Jennifer stays an extra few minutes to chat, or sends you a text or email to continue the conversation and hear your ideas and really talk to you.
Jennifer’s hard work and tireless advocacy for the poor and less fortunate, the middle class and laborers, women and minorities are Democratic values we treasure. It’s why I, and so many others, encouraged her to run for the Iowa House. She had the courage to run and take on the sitting House GOP majority leader. While she came up just short in that first race, we encouraged her to run again.
She said “yes,” and the majority leader saw the writing on the wall. He moved to a safe red seat in Dallas County because he knew Jennifer was going to beat him.
Jennifer flipped that seat from red to blue in 2018 and has been leading ever since. She stepped up to be Iowa House Democratic leader, raised millions for House candidates, and broke fundraising records at the statehouse. She led candidates to hard-fought victories like flipping two Ankeny swing seats in 2022 and holding five Iowa House seats that Donald Trump carried in 2024.
Being the minority leader in the Iowa House is a heavy lift. The job requires tenacity and innumerable hours, as well as the ability to work within your caucus and with the other side. This is the experience required of a qualified candidate seeking higher office.
Jennifer Konfrst’s working-class background, deep Iowa roots, and strong leadership make her the best candidate to not just win Iowa’s third district, but lead our country out of the chaos in Washington DC, that we feel every day and unsettles everyone. She will lead in Congress and collaborate to pass laws that lift people up and not let them down.
She will be a hopeful, strong voice for the concerns of all the people in the third district; her voice can unite us and soften the perceived divisions of rural and urban constituents. It will take hard work, but people will know that those conversations happen and their elected representative has listened, and will show up at public gatherings for constituents, and will work to find a path or plan that includes all of us. That matters!
As the House Democratic leader, Jennifer has already traveled across the third district and listened to concerns about what these communities need to thrive and grow. It is always open and honest and sometimes hard to hear.
Republican incumbent Zach Nunn has let us down; he selects his audience and his press opportunities and plays it safe. Ordinary people are sidelined and not heard. This will not happen because the Jennifer Konfrst that I know has the courage to be in the room and respond to supporters and critics alike.
Iowa is Jennifer’s home, and she understands the issues facing Iowans from Des Moines to Ottumwa to Red Oak. Because of her ties as a fifth-generation Iowan whose mom grew up in Greene County, Jennifer understands what’s at stake for working families, because she’s lived it. For part of her childhood, Jennifer was raised by a single mom who worked night shifts as a VA nurse in Florida. Her mom eventually gave up custody of her to send her back to Iowa to live with her dad and step mom to get a first-rate education from Iowa public schools.
Jennifer is a mother of two grown children. She and her husband, Lee Konfrst, were heavily involved at Plymouth Nursery School all the way through their kid’s education at the Downtown School, Merrill Middle School, and Roosevelt High School in Des Moines.
Education issues are now a point of major concern in all districts across the state. Iowa is no longer recognized as number one in education. An education crisis looms with the private school vouchers bleeding money from public schools, a shortage of teachers and staff on top of cuts to the Area Education Agencies. School safety and gun violence are real concerns. Schools are no longer safe places. Real change has to happen in Congress and at the state level. Jennifer is prepared to take on that challenge. Zach Nunn has done nothing in Congress to stop Trump from eliminating the Department of Education.
A pivotal point for Jennifer this year occurred when Nunn voted to cut funding to Veterans Affairs Medical Centers, like the one in Des Moines. As a daughter of two Air Force veterans, Jennifer knew she had to enter this race and not sit back. Her dad receives first rate health care at the VA, and she’s gotten to know several doctors and nurses there over the years. People are feeling this, and at the Iowa City VA Medical Center on August 27, protesters joined others across the county to communicate how serious staffing issues are with the VA nationwide.
Jennifer will always fight to make sure veterans get the care they’ve earned and deserve. This is not the place to extract dollars from the men and women who have served in the armed services and penalize them and their families. She will hold Nunn accountable for his votes.
Health care and cancer are two overriding concerns, not just for our veterans, but for all Iowans. There is a great apprehension among Iowans about the cancer rates across the state and the linkage to water and pollution. Whether you live in Des Moines or northwest Iowa, where my daughter-in-law’s family farms and her youngest sister has been diagnosed with a rare breast cancer, we look for leadership to focus on causes and solutions that can help us.
These issues are at the kitchen table in rural and urban Iowa. It scares us. It unifies us. We want the attention of leaders in Iowa and in Washington, DC to make quality of life, the environment, and our health priorities. When Nunn voted to slash funding for rural hospitals, nursing homes, and raise our health care costs, it proves yet again how out of touch he really is.
The shortage of workers in Iowa and the paltry minimum wage is of great concern and without change we will not have a labor force to compete with neighboring states. I was proud to see Jennifer stand with the nurses at Unity Point Hospital working to form a union. Farmers are facing uncertainties, more layoffs and elimination of jobs at companies like John Deere and Lennox are happening every week. Our greatest export are our kids and grandkids who are educated here and leave. Jennifer understands this weak economy and the implications on real people.
She can be the bridge between state and federal government because of her experience, and she has a proven track record of getting things done for us without abandoning our values. That leadership is sorely needed in Washington, DC. It is not about money or catering to the special interests, it’s about people. She will fight and dedicate herself to work for those who feel left behind or alone. Empathy and compassion are part of her core being.
There’s no question our country and Iowa are at a crossroads and the next four years are going to be critical. The political landscape changes daily in our own state as we scramble to learn about candidates who want to represent us. It is sometimes hard to grasp the opposing views that we read in letters to the editor or online social media, hear on radio talk shows, and see in television ads. It can cause people to tune out and disengage, and that’s what I believe can’t happen for the common good.
I have hope that the tide can change and we can come together as Iowans who can get beyond labels and see one another as worthy people who are our neighbors and even our own family, who can disagree, but find room to care and be kind. That’s why I am urging us to be engaged in the political process and then vote.
Jennifer has the heart, courage, conviction, and experience to lead us in these tough times.
I’m proud to endorse Jennifer Konfrst for Congress. I trust her, and you can, too.
Top photo of Rose Mary Pratt provided by the author and published with permission.