By Mitch McAndrew   |   [email protected]

Democrats Monica Vernon and Pat Murphy may have some explaining to do tonight.

The two candidates, who will face off in the June 7 primary in hopes of retaking Iowa’s 1st Congressional District from first-term Rep. Rod Blum, R-Iowa, have been working to account for parts of their past that seem at odds with their party. The two will participate in a debate at 7 p.m. at Loras College.

Pat Murphy’s anti-abortion position

Murphy, a former Iowa Speaker of the House who represented Dubuque in the Iowa House for 12 terms, received a 100 percent rating from the Iowa Right to Life Committee in 2001 and again in 2004. Later that same year, he joined Iowa’s chapter of Democrats for Life of America, which listed him as an “All-Star Pro-Life Democrat.”

But as an Iowa legislator, Murphy supported several measures to increase women’s rights.

He cosponsored an Equal Rights Amendment Bill in the 1995 that ensured “equality of rights under the law.” In 1998, he voted to prohibit insurance companies from denying coverage of FDA-approved contraceptive drugs and devices in a bill that became law two years later.

Murphy said this record proves he has worked hard to protect women’s rights.

“I have done more to protect women’s rights than Monica has,” he said. “She has no record of doing it at all.”

Murphy also maintains he has been pro-choice since 2003, “when Monica Vernon was still Republican and supporting pro-life candidates.”

Bret Nilles, the chairman of the Linn County Democratic Central Committee, attributes Murphy’s past pro-life position to his constituency.

“That was based on him representing a portion of Dubuque,” he said. “I think after a while, that maybe wasn’t where he stood personally anymore.”

Monica Vernon and the ‘R’

On the other hand, Vernon, the Cedar Rapids ity councilor and mayor pro tem who ran for lieutenant governor in Jack Hatch’s unsuccessful 2014 gubernatorial bid, was registered as a Republican until she switched parties in 2009.

The switch came at a time when Vernon was considering a bid to be mayor of Cedar Rapids, even though Cedar Rapids council races are nonpartisan. And although Vernon never ran for mayor, she remained a Democrat.

Michelle Gajewski, Vernon’s campaign manager, said the switch was not politically motivated but an effort to align with the party that more accurately represented her personal values.

“There just came a point for her where she didn’t want to have an ‘R’ next to her name because it really wasn’t who she was,” she said.

Gajewski said Vernon was a registered Republican until 2009 only because she didn’t participate in partisan politics, which included city council races.

“Over time, she didn’t pay attention to it because she just wanted to do good work,” she said. “Then when she became more involved in partisan politics, she registered as a Democrat.”

Trading blows

The two camps have scuffled over their Democratic records, beginning not long after Murphy announced his campaign last summer. Emily’s List, a national organization focused on electing pro-choice Democrats, called Murphy bad for women’s access to health care. Murphy disputed this claim, saying it centered on his record from more than a decade ago.

Emily’s List also released what it called a clarified version of Murphy’s record, which was initially emailed to supporters by Murphy’s campaign. The organization said its version of Murphy’s record more accurately conveyed his stance on women’s rights issues.

“Voters deserve to know Pat Murphy’s real record when it comes to women and families, not the revisionist history he conveniently chooses to highlight,” Rachel Thomas, the press secretary for Emily’s List, wrote in an email.

Murphy has responded by criticizing Vernon’s Republican past and working to cast himself as a true progressive. His campaign has released records that emphasize his credibility as a Democrat, including his original 1977 voter-registration form, clearly checked “Democrat.”

Both campaigns, however, deny accusations of mudslinging.

“Everyone has to run the best campaign for themselves, for what they want to be talking about,” Gajewski said. “We spend time talking about Monica and why she’s running for Congress.”

Despite several attacks on Vernon, Murphy also said he was focused on the issues and not on tearing down his rival.

“I don’t care what any one group says,” Murphy said, referring to Emily’s List. “I’m focused on the voters in the 1st District.”

Will voters care?

While any history the candidates have with the Republican Party could be disappointing to 1st District Democrats, the candidates and Democratic Party leaders that The Daily Iowan interviewed say there are more important things at stake in this election.

Murphy named Social Security’s lack of increase in 2015 as an important issue for Iowans, and he criticized Blum for voting for a budget that would privatize Medicare.

Gajewski said Vernon spends much of her time building coalitions with labor unions and Democrats across the state and establishing herself as the candidate who can defeat Blum.

Nilles said the more important contrast between the two is not their record from a decade ago but their experience.

“I think it’s a difference between someone who has been in the Iowa Legislature for a long time versus someone who has been an entrepreneur and work with city government,” he said.

He said voters should also compare the candidates’ evolvolution since the 2014 election, in which Murphy beat several Democrats (including Vernon) for the nomination but lost the seat to Blum.

“Monica has learned from her experience being on a statewide campaign,” he said. “But what’s different from when Pat lost two years ago and now? What’s changed?”