Since the start of last year, the average Iowan has paid about $3,000 more to cover everyday essentials. From gas and groceries to rent and utilities, the price of everyday essentials is increasing rapidly.  

For some Iowans in the state’s 2nd Congressional District, the added costs are only part of the story. A recent report from the United Way of East Central Iowa found that one-third of households in East Central Iowa earn too much to qualify for many forms of assistance but not enough to consistently cover essential expenses.

This has sparked questions about the votes of former State Representative Joe Mitchell, who is now running to represent the district in Congress. Mitchell served in the state legislature and worked as a real estate developer and in an industry group that lobbied on behalf of Iowa developers. 

Mitchell has said that he’s running to represent Iowans who have been left behind. But his record in Des Moines is under scrutiny for whether it matches his words. 

In 2021, Mitchell voted for SF 619, which expanded a state tax credit that pays developers, like himself, to build housing. In the five years since that measure passed, more than

$2.5 million in state tax credits have gone to BAM Development and Bousselot & Mitchell Company, two companies that he has a financial interest in. 

That same year, Mitchell, a landlord himself, voted to block Iowa cities from requiring landlords to accept federal housing vouchers. He also voted against two amendments that would have

exempted veterans and people with disabilities from the federal housing voucher rules.

And now, despite claims that he rejects corporate PAC money, records show that he has taken $305,266 from corporate executives and investors.

Mitchell has long decried a system that works for insiders and lobbyists. But for Iowans across the 2nd District, the cost of basic necessities is rising and Mitchell’s record is receiving a closer look.