A rural Keosauqua man is running for the Iowa House of Representatives in the coming year.
Tom O’Donnell is seeking the seat in House District 87, which covers Van Buren County and parts of Henry and Jefferson counties, including Mt. Pleasant and Fairfield.
O’Donnell said he’s running to help keep the rural lifestyle residents love, working across the entire district to address costs and improve education, health care, economic opportunities, natural resources and more.
“We prize our children, want them to succeed and thrive, and hopefully, remain or return to help our area grow,” O’Donnell said. “We’re a community that helps each other, where we’re safe, where we can enjoy natural beauty and resources like forests, rivers, lakes and fields full of wildlife. We care for and respect our elderly and veterans. We love our small towns and want them to succeed and offer things that make them even better places to live.”
But “we can feel our rural life and special people and places slipping away,” O’Donnell said. Food, housing and utilities costs are rising. Wages aren’t keeping up. Population and school enrollment are falling. Hospitals are struggling. Seniors risk injury or death in poorly monitored care centers. Family, friends and neighbors die too young from preventable diseases, especially cancer.
“We can preserve and improve our unique and wonderful rural lifestyle and places,” O’Donnell said. “It takes all of us, working together.”
O’Donnell, is a retired reporter and editor and lives in the unincorporated town of Vernon with his wife, Paula Mohr. He has two grown children who live out of state. O’Donnell ran for the House seat in 2024, losing to Republican Jeff Shipley.
The campaign will formally launch in February.