The race for Iowa's 3rd Congressional District took a nasty turn this week after Democrat Sarah Trone Garriott and her allies attacked a private voter over a nearly decade-old criminal record, a move Republican Rep. Zach Nunn blasted as cruel and unbefitting a pastor.
According to Redstate, the controversy began when Dallas Center City Council member Shellie Flockhart appeared in a Congressional Leadership Fund ad criticizing Trone Garriott's record, including her vote against protecting women's sports. The 30-second spot featured several 3rd District residents who called the Democrat state senator's positions dangerous for children.
'Sarah Trone Garriott is just plain dangerous,' Flockhart said in the ad.
From Ad Attack to Personal Hit Piece
Flockhart, 55, pleaded guilty in 2017 to charges related to child endangerment and driving under the influence after authorities said she drove drunk with two of her children in the car. She has spoken openly about her addiction, her recovery, and her Christian faith for years, including in podcast interviews last year.
Rather than answer the substance of the ad, Trone Garriott and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee seized on Flockhart's past. The Washington Post published a report on the ad, and Flockhart said the paper attached conditions for using her statement that she believed were designed to silence her. Redstate noted that not one of Trone Garriott's defenders, including the DCCC, responded to the actual claims in the CLF video.
The timing drew immediate criticism from conservatives who saw a coordinated effort to blunt criticism of the Democrat nominee by discrediting a voter who appeared on camera. Before It's News also highlighted the episode as an example of media outlets doing partisan work in a competitive House race.
Flockhart Refuses to Back Down
In a first-person piece published by The Daily Wire, Flockhart refused to retreat and instead doubled down on her criticism of Trone Garriott, who is a progressive pastor in addition to serving in the Iowa Senate.
'Nearly a decade ago, I was charged with driving while intoxicated with my kids in the car. It was serious. It was wrong. I took full responsibility, entered recovery, and by the grace of God, have been continuously sober ever since,' Flockhart wrote. 'This is not a secret that I've kept close to the chest. In fact, I have spoken about this openly for years.'
She said she briefly considered backing down before realizing what that would signal to others in recovery and to her own children.
'It would tell every person clawing their way back from a dark place that they will never be good enough,' she wrote. 'It would teach my own kids the wrong lesson.'
Flockhart saved her sharpest words for Trone Garriott herself.
'Sarah Trone Garriott claims to be a minister who cares about people. Her campaign treated a woman, a mother, who is nearly a decade into recovery, as a disposable distraction,' Flockhart wrote. 'They want us to believe that one past mistake erases every step anyone in recovery has taken since. I refuse. I will keep speaking the truth. I will keep letting God lead. And I will vote for candidates who respond with character instead of cruelty.'
Nunn Fires Back at 'Progressive Pastor'
Rep. Zach Nunn, who is seeking a third term, also weighed in. The two-term Republican said he could not believe he had to explain the Bible and the concept of redemption to a pastor who should know better.
The clash comes at a critical moment in one of the country's most closely watched House races. The Cook Political Report rates the district as 'lean D,' with House Editor Erin Covey writing, as recapped by the Des Moines Register, that while Nunn is 'one of his party's stronger incumbents,' headwinds facing Republicans and Democratic strength at the top of the ticket could leave him vulnerable.
Women's Sports Front and Center
The underlying issue in the ad remains a central theme of the campaign. Nunn has criticized Trone Garriott's pro-trans record, including her vote against protecting women's sports, in campaign ads and at this week's debate. Redstate reported that the best Trone Garriott has offered in response is a denial of her own record.
The episode is a reminder of the stakes in the 3rd District, which includes Des Moines and its western suburbs. Republican voters there have watched Democrats increasingly embrace positions on transgender participation in girls' and women's athletics that poll poorly with Iowa families, and the CLF ad put those positions in voters' own words.
Flockhart, for her part, continues to post on X about the episode, accusing The Washington Post and the Trone Garriott campaign of a conveniently timed hit piece aimed at a private citizen who told an inconvenient truth.
FAQ
What did Shellie Flockhart say in the Congressional Leadership Fund ad?
Flockhart, a Dallas Center City Council member, said in the ad that 'Sarah Trone Garriott is just plain dangerous,' referring to the Democrat's positions on transgender issues and children.
Why did Sarah Trone Garriott's campaign attack Shellie Flockhart?
After the ad aired, Trone Garriott and the DCCC highlighted Flockhart's 2017 guilty plea for DUI and child endangerment, a case she has discussed openly for years as part of her recovery story.
How does Cook Political rate the Iowa 3rd District race?
The Cook Political Report rates the district as 'lean D,' while noting that incumbent Republican Zach Nunn is one of his party's stronger incumbents.