Nikoel Hytrek is Iowa Starting Line’s longest-serving reporter. She covers LGBTQ issues, abortion rights and all topics of interest to Iowans. Her biggest goal is to help connect the dots between policy and people’s real lives. If you have story ideas or tips, send them over to nikoel@new.iowastartingline.com.
Nikoel Hytrek
Latest from Nikoel Hytrek
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The Source Of Donald Trump’s Right-Wing Judges
Though President Donald Trump was impeached and faces a trial to determine if he will be removed from office, his judicial nominees are still being heard and confirmed. Thirteen judges were confirmed the same week he was impeached in the House, bringing Trump’s number of judicial appointees to more than 180. During the December Democratic…
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Judicial Advocates: Democrats Must Restore ‘Faith In The Third Branch’
This election cycle, Democratic voters are realizing the importance of the federal courts with a new sense of urgency. This is partly because of court advocacy groups, but also the speed at which President Donald Trump’s nominations have been confirmed. With the help of Senate Republicans, Trump has appointed 187 judges to lifetime positions on…
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Senate Confirms More Judges, Though Not As Bad This Time
While the country’s focus is on the impeachment vote in the House of Representatives, the Senate yesterday and today is in the midst of confirming 13 more federal judges for district courts across the country. None of these nominees have drawn the same controversy as some of the others and most have reasonable experience for…
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The Iowans Who Do Care About Impeachment – And Accountability
Last night, people around the country took to the streets to demand accountability for Donald J. Trump, the fourth president in history to face impeachment. In Des Moines, hundreds of people gathered on the steps of the Iowa Capitol building with signs and chants. Protesters assembled in five other cities in Iowa, from Sioux City,…
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Did Joni Ernst Break Election Law In Coordination Case?
As political candidates of all backgrounds denounce the role of dark money in American politics, recent news around Sen. Joni Ernst’s campaign illustrates the difficult task of enforcing the rules already in place. Earlier this month, the AP reported that the senator and her campaign have worked closely with an outside money group called Iowa…
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Iowa Now Alone As Only State Barring Past Felons From Voting
Iowa is now the only state in the nation that disenfranchises all people who commit felonies and have served their time. Today, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear signed an executive order to restore voting rights to felons in the state, leaving Iowa alone as the only state permanently barring felons from that right. It isn’t for…
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Unqualified Judge Confirmed In Close Vote With Joni Ernst’s Help
This afternoon Sen. Joni Ernst voted to confirm Lawrence VanDyke to a seat on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. VanDyke was confirmed by a vote of 51-44. For the past few days, Ernst has been one of the senators targeted by progressive judicial advocacy group Demand Justice to vote no on the nomination. VanDyke…
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Joni Ernst Faces Vote On ‘Not Qualified’ Gun Safety Opponent
Sen. Joni Ernst will make yet another choice, likely this week, on a judicial appointee with limited credentials and a controversial ideological background. Lawrence VanDyke has been nominated for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the second-highest level of the federal judiciary and where the majority of contested laws and policies are decided. Progressive judicial…
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Iowa Democrats Elect New Leaders For Vice Chair Slots
The Iowa Democratic Party has a new first vice chair: June Owens. Owens was elected on Saturday after Andrea Phillips, who had held the first vice chair role for several years, stepped down to run for the Iowa House in Ankeny. She’s the first African American woman to serve in the position. “What I’d like…
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Ernst Backs Nominee Who Defended Iowa 6-Week Abortion Ban
One of Donald Trump’s biggest goals as president has been reshaping the federal judiciary. On Tuesday, eight judicial nominees were highlighted for an abbreviated debate and are expected to come up for a vote before the full Senate sometime this week. Sen. Joni Ernst, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, approved all of them,…
