Unstoppable in Iowa: India May on Rural Power, Health Care, and Speaking Truth to Power
Guest, India May, Political Candidate, Speaker, Advocate
A Grassroots Conversation About Local Courage
In this episode of Shadow Politics, hosts Michael D. Brown and Liberty Jones welcome India May, Democratic candidate for Iowa House District 58, covering Floyd, Chickasaw, and Bremer counties. Michael introduces her as a nurse, librarian, medical examiner investigator, mother, and community advocate who gained attention after publicly confronting Senator Joni Ernst about Medicare and Medicaid cuts. The episode focuses on local power, rural politics, health care, LGBTQ rights, campaign finance, voter access, and what it means for an ordinary citizen to step into public leadership.
Discovering the Power of One Civilian Voice
India says one of the biggest lessons she has learned over the past year is how much power civilians truly have. She points to her public criticism of Senator Joni Ernst, who later announced retirement, and her scrutiny of her opponent’s unpaid property taxes, after which he paid them. India’s point is that people do not have to wait until they hold office to make a difference. By speaking plainly, documenting facts, and refusing to be silent, ordinary citizens can pressure powerful figures and create real consequences.
From Independent Voter to Democratic Candidate
Liberty asks India about the difference between her expectations and the realities of running for office. India explains that she spent much of her voting life as an independent and is now running as a Democrat in red, rural Iowa. She says she has been pleasantly surprised by the number of people willing to step up, volunteer, knock doors, join parades, and publicly support a campaign that calls for change. She describes live music, community energy, and people applauding the campaign at local events as signs that many rural Iowans know something is wrong and want a different direction.
A Campaign Rooted in Fair Voting
When Liberty asks what policies are most important to India, she names voting reform as her top priority. India supports efforts discussed by Iowa gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand to make voting more fair and less dependent on party structures. She criticizes Iowa’s ban on ranked-choice voting and says she is interested in open primaries, star voting, approval voting, and ballot measures. Her goal is to make Iowa’s political system more responsive to voters rather than party machinery.
Medicaid, Mental Health, and a Broken Health System
Michael asks about India’s well-known confrontation with Senator Ernst over Medicaid cuts and how those cuts affect Iowans. India says Iowa has already been ahead of the curve in damaged health care because Medicaid was privatized in 2016. She describes delayed care, denied care, unpaid reimbursements to hospitals, work requirements, and hospitals struggling to stay open. She also says Iowa ranks at the bottom for inpatient mental health care availability and faces severe health care deserts, rising cancer concerns, and limited oncology access across many counties.
The “Big Beautiful Bill” and Political Timing
India argues that federal cuts tied to the so-called “big beautiful bill” will be devastating and says the timing of implementation appears politically calculated. According to her, the cuts are delayed until November, creating an opening for Republicans to blame Democrats if the party balance changes after the election. Michael responds that this shows she has learned one of the central lessons of politics: policy and timing are often structured to shape public blame.
Christianity, MAGA, and Moral Accountability
The conversation turns to religion and politics when Michael, speaking as a Christian and father of an openly gay daughter, asks how Christians reconcile cruelty toward LGBTQ people, immigrants, and vulnerable groups. India, who says she was raised Methodist, contrasts the Methodist slogan “open hearts, open minds, open doors” with what she describes as MAGA cruelty. She says even the Old Testament emphasizes hospitality to strangers and kindness to those in need, and she argues that current right-wing politics often represents the opposite of what Christ or Christianity teaches.
LGBTQ Rights, Book Bans, and Iowa’s Culture War
India discusses the legislative push in Iowa against LGBTQ protections, trans and nonbinary people, and public libraries. She says Republicans have enacted or pursued punishing policies against LGBTQ Iowans and banned local governments from passing protective ordinances. As a former librarian, she criticizes book bans and groups such as Moms for Liberty, saying the fear that books about gay families will “turn children gay” is baseless. She connects the fight over libraries and education to broader attempts to control speech, identity, and public understanding.
Teen Pregnancy, Sex Education, and Child Safety
The discussion also touches on sex education and child safety. India argues that teen pregnancy has declined not because of abstinence-only silence but because young people have more access to information and teach one another how to be safer. She emphasizes that adults abusing children, not LGBTQ people or books, are a real issue that should be confronted honestly. Michael adds that in his own experience, abuse often came from heterosexual authority figures, reinforcing the need for real education rather than fear-based censorship.
Money, PACs, and a Grassroots Fundraising Fight
India explains that her campaign has raised meaningful support and even outraised her opponent in some ways, though he has outspent her and benefits from PAC funding. She contrasts his expensive steak-dinner fundraising with her community-centered grilled cheese events, including a planned family-friendly fundraiser at the Floyd County Fairgrounds with games and raffle tickets. She stresses that every small donation matters and directs listeners to MayForIowa.com for campaign support.
Rural Iowa, Brain Drain, and Keeping Young People Home
Liberty asks how rural Iowa can keep young workers, doctors, entrepreneurs, and college graduates from leaving. India says the problem is real and often called “brain drain.” She argues that young people leave when communities attack LGBTQ people, underfund public schools, fail to protect workers, allow corporations to exploit communities, and make life less livable. Her answer is that Iowa must become a place where young people can be safe, respected, employed, and proud to build a life near their families.
Challenging Her Opponent’s Record
India discusses her opponent, Charlie Thompson, saying he has served two terms in the Iowa legislature while also working as a lawyer and real estate developer. She criticizes him for not paying property taxes on several properties and for being involved in a stalled downtown development project in Charles City. She also criticizes legislation he supported, including a three-strikes-style bill that she says will increase incarceration despite Iowa not being a high-crime state, especially troubling in a state with poor mental health care access.
Water Quality, Cancer, and the Cost of Silence
A major policy issue India raises is Iowa’s water quality. She says a study identified nitrates from agricultural runoff as a major contaminant and connects this to Iowa’s rising cancer concerns. She criticizes the state for failing to educate the public after the study and says candidates must be willing to have hard conversations about unsafe water, preventable cancer risks, health care costs, child care costs, exploitative tax structures, and corporate influence. For India, voters may eventually wake up when these issues affect their health and wallets directly.
Trump, MAGA, and Cracks in the Bubble
Michael asks whether Trump’s appeal is fading in Iowa, especially among farmers affected by tariffs and economic pressure. India says Trump signs came down quickly in Iowa and notes farmer bankruptcies as a serious concern. She believes some former MAGA supporters are beginning to question what they were told, including one former Trump supporter who wrote her name on the Republican primary ballot. Still, she says many voters remain trapped in algorithmic echo chambers, making truth-telling and local conversations essential.
Iowa’s Governor’s Race and Statewide Politics
India also discusses Iowa’s governor’s race, praising Rob Sand while criticizing Governor Kim Reynolds and the current Republican leadership. She says Reynolds is deeply unpopular and criticizes her use of taxpayer-funded private-jet travel while asking Iowans what public services they would sacrifice to reduce property taxes. India also discusses Republican candidate Zach Lahn, portraying him as a wealthy, Koch-connected figure who talks about water quality but carries far-right cultural positions. Her broader point is that Iowa politics is full of contradictions, money, and high stakes.
An Authentic Candidate With an Unstoppable Message
As the interview closes, Liberty asks what India would want young Iowans to remember. India’s answer is to be unapologetically themselves, find out who they are, and speak truth to power relentlessly. Michael praises her authenticity, endorses her candidacy, and calls her the kind of candidate America needs. Liberty says she does not have the same power to endorse, but will buy a campaign shirt. The show closes with Michael dedicating Sia’s “Unstoppable” to India May and encouraging listeners to support her campaign.
