There’s a new candidate in the race for the Iowa Senate District 50 seat.

Nannette Griffin, a Democrat, announced her campaign for the seat, which includes all of Lee County, Burlington, West Burlington and Danville. Senator Jeff Reichman currently represents the district.

“I decided to run for the Iowa Senate because Southeast Iowa’s small businesses need a fighter,” said Griffin. “During Senator Reichman’s initial campaign, he said he ran because of the ‘decline of economic opportunity’ in our corner of the state. Unfortunately, the Senator has not been able to turn things around, and I think it’s time to send a small businesswoman to Des Moines to bring opportunity back to Southeast Iowa. As State Senator, I will empower working-class families by bringing economic opportunity back to the district for entrepreneurs looking to open or expand their small business, and fight to increase apprenticeship programs in our schools and union membership.”

Griffin owns Griffin Muffler & Brake Center in Fort Madison and recently served as Treasurer for the Fort Madison Area Chamber of Commerce. She won the 2023 Deb Dalziel Entrepreneur of the Year award and earned an accredited master’s degree in automotive management from the Automotive Management Institute.

“I’ve spent my life working to empower business owners as the Founding President of the Southeast Iowa chapter of the Midwest Auto Care Alliance so that everyone has an opportunity to achieve the American dream and want to continue that work in the Iowa Senate and am looking forward to going to work for Southeast Iowans in Des Moines as their next state Senator.”

To learn more about Griffin’s campaign for State Senate, click here.