The Eye

CQ Politics presently rates the Iowa 2 race as Safe Democratic, in large part because the district has the strongest Democratic lean of any in the state. Loebsack defeated Miller-Meeks by nearly 20 percentage points in the 2008 election.

A more competitive 2010 contest is anticipated in the Des Moines-based 3rd district, where Democratic Rep. Leonard L. Boswell is facing at least three Republican challengers, including two who made their plans known within the past two weeks.

A formal announcement could come as early as this week from state Sen. Brad Zaun, who told CQ Politics Nov. 19 that he intended to challenge Boswell and would make a declaration of his political plans after Dec. 1.

Zaun last week filed candidacy paperwork with the Federal Election Commission, and his campaign Web site confirms that he's running for Congress.

Zaun's opponents in the GOP primary include Jim Gibbons, the former wrestling coach at Iowa State University, and Dave Funk, an aviation security consultant.

Gibbons on Monday unveiled a campaign Web site that he said would help the campaign "organize the grassroots and netroots."

The candidacies of Zaun and Gibbons prompted CQ Politics to re-rate the Iowa 3 contest as Likely Democratic, a more competitive designation than the race's original rating of Safe Democratic.

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