Former Lieutenant Governor Joy Corning died over the weekend at the age of 84. Corning was the first woman to run for the Republican nomination for governor in Iowa, and she had a long and active political career. She served under former Governor Terry Branstad from 1991 to 1998.
Former Lieutenant Governor Sally Pederson, who succeeded Corning in office, joined Emily Woodbury to remember Corning during this hour of River to River.
On the bipartisan projects they worked on together:
“We had a personal relationship that transcended politics, but she had a lot of relationships that transcended politics. That was something that was special about Joy.
"It was natural that when issues arose that needed bipartisan voice, that we could be sort of the visual representation of that.”
On support for Planned Parenthood:
“There were many republican moderates who were supportive of Planned Parenthood, and that changed over time. At one time, she was not the rare republican. Unfortunately, it’s very difficult for republicans to be elected holding a pro-choice view today. But certainly, I think there are very many republicans that do support Planned Parenthood.”
On Kim Reynolds taking office:
“As you know, former Lieutenant Governor Corning was very active in the organization 50/50 in 220, and that is too a bipartisan effort to elect more women to public office. While she would be pleased to see that there is progress on this front, she wouldn’t be satisfied until we reach that goal. She’d be happy, but she’s never satisfied until she reaches the goal.
"No one really can fill her shoes."
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During this hour of River to River, we also hear from Joyce Russell, Iowa Public Radio’s statehouse correspondent; Erin Jordan, investigative reporter for the Gazette in Cedar Rapids; Todd Coffelt, Chief for the State Parks Bureau for the Iowa DNR; Joy Ripslinger, from Davenport; and Clare Roth, who will doing a set at the Turnbuckle Music and Comedy Festival at Codfish Hollow this weekend.