The two remaining candidates vying for the now-vacant Iowa City City Council District C seat once held by Andrew Dunn – Oliver Weilein and Ross Nusser — appeared at a monthly meeting of the Iowa chapter of Moms Demand Action in the Iowa City Public Library Monday night.

Candidates Weilein and Nusser both withstood a primary election Feb. 4 that was originally intended to narrow the race from three candidates to two. The third candidate was Sharon DeGraw, who dropped out of the race shortly before the primary.

Of the 932 voters who cast a ballot in the primary, 641 voted for Weilein and 248 voted for Nusser, indicating a potential lead for Weilein leading into the special election slated for March 4.

Weilein and Nusser were invited to sit in and speak at the routine meeting showcasing discussions on preventative action, policy, and mindfulness for gun violence and its victims.

The meeting, led by Moms Demand Action volunteer Temple Hiatt, hosted both an in-person and Zoom audience and offered both candidates the opportunity to present their personal platforms on gun violence and prevention, primarily focused in Iowa City.

University of Iowa second-year Jane Reagan emotionally described three students at her high school, members of disadvantaged communities, who each lost their lives to gun violence.

Reagan argued this disadvantaged status had resulted in a lack of media coverage, and the majority’s declaration blamed the violence on the victims.

“He never really got the justice he deserved, and he never got the recognition he deserved because he lived in a community that was just kind of deemed to be unfixable,” she said.

She said, in these cases, those surrounding the children who lost their lives are affected strongly by the loss of life. The victims’ parents are especially affected.

“Just this past year, his [one of the victims] mom walked a picture of him down the graduation stage,” she said, “and it really should have been him.”

Following Reagan’s comments, both candidates were invited to present their platforms on gun violence and prevention, specifically focused on Iowa City.

Hiatt announced each candidate would have nine minutes to speak and address the small audience. Candidate and Urban Acres Real Estate Co-Owner Ross Nusser was the first to speak.

Initially, Nusser spoke to the audience and stated his support for the advocacy work Moms Demand Action does to raise awareness of and prevent gun violence. He said gun violence is an issue that no public servant should speak of or act on lightly.

“No one, especially not a candidate for city council, should make light of the devastating impact gun violence has had on our own community,” Nusser said.

He listed a series of firearm reform concepts he believes are effective methods to reduce gun violence, such as more involved background checks, addressing loopholes in the firearm-purchasing process, enforcing red flag laws that can help remove firearms from domestic crisis situations, and outright bans on “military-style rifles” in civilian possession.

Following this platform proclamation, Nusser immediately turned his speech to addressing Weilein, claiming his views and public social media posts are distinctly pro-firearm and violent.

“I’m running against someone who actively glorifies gun violence. His own public social media posts show a troubling relationship with firearms, particularly his AR-15 assault rifle,” Nusser said.

Nusser questioned Weilein’s use of the rhetoric of self-defense necessitating gun ownership, asking from whom he found it necessary to defend himself.

“My opponent has repeatedly claimed he bought an assault rifle for self-protection, but protection from whom?” Nusser said. “The police? His neighbors? His community? His rhetoric is reckless and hostile.”

Nusser proceeded to list a variety of Weilein’s social media posts which he claimed glorified acts of violence. He named posts dating back to 2019, identifying each by its exact date and content. One spoke with levity of the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. He additionally posted in October 2024 that the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was “one of the funniest days of all time.”

Nusser punctuated his comment on Weilein’s Jan. 6 post with the fact that the riots resulted in a death by gun violence.

Speaking directly to the small group, Nusser vehemently condemned Weilein, saying that his beliefs have no place in a public office.

“There is no place for that kind of extremism in local leadership,” he said. “I see firsthand how gun violence is tied to so many other systemic issues, domestic violence, suicide, addiction, and community trauma. Do we want thoughtful, community-focused leadership that takes these issues seriously? Or do we want someone who recklessly glorifies assault rifles and violence?”

RELATED: Oliver Weilein and Ross Nusser advance to special election to fill vacant city council seat

Nusser finished his statements again thanking Moms Demand Action for their advocacy.

Weilein immediately began his nine minutes by addressing a profound confusion regarding Nusser’s comments.

“When I was invited to this, I was under the impression it was going to be something of a discussion where we have back and forth, where I answer questions, where we talk through certain things,” he said. “I certainly didn’t expect to come here and listen to a five-minute, disingenuous hit piece against me and other people.”

Weilein addressed Nusser’s comments head-on, saying he is categorically against U.S. gun culture, stating he is a non-violent person. The posts, he said, were made originally to share only within a small circle of friends, a reality now disrupted by his choice to run for public office.

“I didn’t want to delete these posts or try to hide them,” he said. “I felt that it would be dishonest.”

Weilein stated his ownership and use of firearms is a specific directive he finds necessary to defend himself from threats brought upon him by “far-right, white nationalist types” as a result of his advocacy work with anti-racist, anti-Trump, and LGBTQ+ groups.

“These threats were so extreme, incredible, and from people with extreme weaponry that my partner and I made the difficult decision to own and train firearms,” he said.

In a similar theme to what Reagan had said at the beginning of the meeting, Weilein said his advocacy work is specifically targeted to help disadvantaged groups, especially those who find themselves in a similar position as Weilein and his family where the need to use firearms for self-defense arises.

“I’m in a unique position to help people in these marginalized communities who have faced similar threats, who have faced stalking, who have faced racism, who have faced violent transphobia,” he said. “I’m in a unique place to help these people who’ve made the difficult decision to purchase firearms.”

Following Weilein’s comments, the meeting turned its attention to a presentation on a case study on how victims of gun violence react in the short- and long-term to trauma.

To close the meeting out, Hiatt spoke about the risks of gun ownership and misuse in a way that tied together both Reagan and Weilein’s comments, adding that education and advocacy that groups like Moms Demand Action provide are important for creating a safer environment.

“I do fully understand that fear is a driving force to wanting to own firearms,” Hiatt said. “If we can do it in a safe and fully understanding manner, I think that would be best.”