Nunn vs. Baccam in 3rd U.S Congressional Debate

The 3rd Congressional Debate between Republican incumbent representative Zach Nunn and Democratic challenger Lanon Baccam was a debate filled with varying viewpoints and discussion of the goals for Iowa going forward into 2025 and beyond. Both Candidates sought to state their case for how they could seek to help the Iowan people in such a crucial time for American politics. But who were the candidates themselves?

The first candidate, the incumbent Zach Nunn, is a member of the Republican party, aligning more with conservative ideals for America, which varies from his democratic adversary Lanon Baccam. Baccam, the democratic challenger to Nunn, hopes to gain a crucial seat in the U.S. Senate for the democratic party, especially during this current election cycle. This debate, which took place at Northwest High School, sought to cover a variety of issues. 

The hosts of the debate, KCCI, were keen to make sure both candidates were kept in check and kept the debate moving, setting specific rules for both candidates, a growing theme amongst political debates at all levels of government. The debate itself covered subjects such as abortion rights, the farm bill, which has been in conflict in the U.S. government since 2018, and Lanon Baccam’s media presence, especially with comments stated about President Joe Biden in 2020. The responses varied on these questions, some yielding important insight into the candidates’ ideas and goals, and others simply exercising their talking points that have already been stated in their previous political campaign ads and speeches. Overall, the 3rd Congressional debate gave a powerful and crucial insight for the Iowan people in a very important election cycle.