2015 North Iowa Dems Wing Ding

Now that the Harkin Steak Fry has been retired alongside its namesake Senator, it’s time for a new summer event to bring Iowa Democrats together.

Well, if last night was any indication, the North Iowa Wing Ding is our answer.

It’s just under a two hour drive from Des Moines to Clear Lake and there’s bupkis to see aside from the wind farms. It’s quiet, almost serene, if corn and soybeans are your thing.

Once I walked up the the historic Surf Ballroom, it was anything but serene. The campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Martin O’Malley were engaged in the visually exciting but usually unconvincing tradition of the sign war where campaign volunteers and staffers yell their heads off, chant and wave signs at incoming event goers and onlookers.

Inside, it was a party. Speeches by four of the five Democratic presidential candidates, an announcement by party activist Kim Weaver that she’s decided to take on national embarrassment Steve King in the fourth congressional district, and, if I may say, one heck of a speech from State Senator and nearly-candidate for US Senate Rob Hogg.

Though I entered the venue far too late and exhausted to try to get a proper shot of the candidates speaking, I did not come home disappointed with my reel. Take a look:

Can’t see the slideshow? You can see these and other photos on Flickr.