Elesha Gayman Ready to Get to Work

One of the biggest upsets on November 7th in the state was Elesha Gayman's win in Iowa House District 84 in Scott County. Gayman defeated a long time incumbant and did so without much help from the state party. The Quad Cities Times have a story about Gayman and her plans in the Iowa House.

Come January, the 28-year-old Gayman gets another chance to impress: in Des Moines, with the opening of the 2007 Iowa legislative session.

Friends say they are confident of her success.

“She’s smart, she’s motivated. She wants to do a good job,” says Bev Strayhall, a veteran Davenport activist and supporter. “I think she’ll be a star.”

Gayman, whose family has deep roots in west Davenport, is the youngest Quad-Citian to be elected to the Iowa Legislature in a decade, and she’ll be among eight legislators younger than 30 who will take seats there. That is a change for a governing body whose members’ average age is 52.

Gayman campaigned on the idea that the capitol was lacking in a young person’s point of view, and she’s eager to take her ideas to the Statehouse to try to stanch the flow of young people out of Iowa, a major problem for the state.

I met Elesha last April at a Democracy for America training in the Quad Cities. I am not surprised at all that she won. She is intelligent, outgoing, and most importantly, is willing to listen and learn. It is great to have her heading to Des Moines to represent Iowans of all ages.