Kimberly Graham

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Kimberly Graham

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

June 2, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

University of California-Irvine, 1991

Law

Drake University Law School, 1999

Personal

Birthplace

Oceanside, Calif.

Religion

Christian

Profession

Attorney

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Kimberly Graham (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. Senate to represent Iowa. She lost in the Democratic primary on June 2, 2020.

Graham completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Kimberly Graham was born on the Camp Pendleton Marine Core Base in Oceanside, California. She obtained an undergraduate degree from the University of California-Irvine in June 1991 and a J.D. from Drake University Law School in May 1999. Her professional experience includes working as an attorney and as a certified mediator. She established her own law firm and worked primarily in family and juvenile law, where her work included serving as the guardian ad litem for children in the Polk County, Iowa, juvenile drug court system.

As of 2020, Graham was affiliated with Emerge Iowa, the Nebraska Iowa NAACP, and the Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement.

In 2021, Graham announced she would run for Polk County attorney.

Elections

2020

See also: United States Senate election in Iowa, 2020

United States Senate election in Iowa, 2020 (June 2 Democratic primary)

United States Senate election in Iowa, 2020 (June 2 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Iowa

Incumbent Joni Ernst defeated Theresa Greenfield, Rick Stewart, and Suzanne Herzog in the general election for U.S. Senate Iowa on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Joni Ernst (R)	51.7	864,997
		Theresa Greenfield (D)	45.2	754,859
		Rick Stewart (L)	2.2	36,961
		Suzanne Herzog (Independent)	0.8	13,800
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	1,211

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,671,828
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Iowa

Theresa Greenfield defeated Michael Franken, Kimberly Graham, Eddie Mauro, and Cal Woods (Unofficially withdrew) in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Iowa on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Theresa Greenfield	47.7	132,001
		Michael Franken	24.9	68,851
		Kimberly Graham	15.0	41,554
		Eddie Mauro	11.0	30,400
		Cal Woods (Unofficially withdrew)	1.2	3,372
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	514

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 276,692
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Iowa

Incumbent Joni Ernst advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Iowa on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Joni Ernst	98.6	226,589
		Other/Write-in votes	1.4	3,132

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 229,721
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Paul Rieck (R)

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Kimberly Graham completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Graham's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I'm a single mom with a 20-year son, Max. For 20 years I've also been an advocate and attorney for abused or neglected kids and parents in juvenile court. I'm running for office for Max, for all the kids I've represented, for all of us. Because it's time that one of us, represented us.

My dad was one of 15 kids from a poor family. My mom was a teenager when she had me, dropped out of high school, then later got her GED. My parents lucked out, both found union jobs and retired from those jobs. My grandfather, my son's father and stepdad were or are all union workers. I was a union reorganized volunteer with the APFA, the American Airlines flight attendants' union. I've walked a picket line and fought for better wages and conditions for flight attends. We need more and stronger unions, too. Unions are one way we help balance power between workers and companies and it's hp we grow the middle class.

I've been working non-stop since I was 14. I've waitressed, cleaned houses, worked in a dry cleaner, a retail store, and been a teacher and a teaching assistant. I worked 3 part-time jobs at times while in college until I became a flight attendant and then I worked all weekends and went to school during the week. I wanted to help people for a living, went to law school and took out student loans that I'm still paying on. I know what it's like to work hard in the wealthiest nation on earth and still not get ahead.

America can do better and we will flip the Senate.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• People over Profits.

• Healthcare is a human right. In the wealthiest Nation on Earth, everyone should be able to live a life of health and dignity.

• Until we get Big Money out of politics, things won't change. That is why I am not taking corporate PAC or corporate lobbyist money.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

-Healthcare

-Climate Crisis

-Investments in Children and Families

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

Norma Ray

Crip Camp

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

The authentic desire to listen to what people need in order lead lives of health and dignity, and the gumption to actually go get that done for people.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I believe that my experience as an attorney for neglected and abused children have provided me with a number of qualities that would make me an amazing Senator.

I will let the words from an endorsement from a former client explain-

"I met Kimberly when I was about 11. She represented me as a juvenile when I was removed from my abusive adoptive parents. She believed me when no one else did. She went to bat for me for years while I was thrown around from foster home to foster home. She never gave up on me. One thing that stuck with me and always will, is when I was put in a shelter for kids until they could find me a foster home, Kim would just come sit with me, bring me ice cream, chat with me, things I know she didn't have to do and that weren't "part of the job" but she did it because she cared. She has been one of the few people in my life who has remained constant. I am now 25 and she still reaches out and makes sure I'm okay. It's someone like Kimberly who will make sure everyone is heard. She is someone who will fight for everyone. I couldn't think of anyone better to represent us for US Senate."

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

To be a faithful public servant and representative to those you were elected to serve; and doing your very best to get things done in office that will improve the lives of those you were elected to serve

What legacy would you like to leave?

The passage of the American Childcare Act, which will do for children what the ADA did for people with disabilities.

The bill would provide for Universal Childcare, Paid Parental Leave, and many other necessary investments.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I worked at a Dry Cleaners starting when I was 14 as a clerk. I worked there for a year.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Hermoine Granger, because wouldn't be great to be that smart, have that much heart, and be able to fix things with magic.

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

As a single parent since my son was 7 years old, and practicing a type of law that does not pay very well (mixed with high student loan debt and premiums), it has been hard to get ahead.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

-The Climate Crisis, as the impacts of climate change will become irreversible if we do not cut emissions to net zero by 2030.

-Decline in life expectancy due to lack of healthcare.

-Increase in severity of mental illness due to lack of accessible treatment.

-Increasingly apparent fallout of severe poverty as the wealth gap begins to widen.

-Generalized hopelessness among the youth as they grow disillusioned with the older generations in power who are not taking action to improve their futures.

What qualities does the U.S. Senate possess that makes it unique as an institution?

It is one of the only governmental institutions to, in a sense, become democratized. State legislatures initially picked Senators up until the passing of the 17th Amendment, where the institution was literally handed over to the people.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for senators to have previous experience in government or politics?

It can be, it depends on the candidate. It can be beneficial, but it isn't helpful if the Senator hasn't done anything in their career up until this point to really help people.

What do you think of the filibuster?

It depends, we need to take into account that things change and that you might be on one side of filibuster now wishing it didn't exist only to find yourself on the opposite end of things one election cycle later thankful it does exist.

What criteria would you apply when deciding whether to confirm presidential appointees?

-Relevant experience to the position for which they are being nominated.

-No conflicts of interest.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other senators?

In my 17 years of work as a mediator, I have learned a lot of things about how humans reach agreement on issues. It is critically important that you build a relationship with someone who you are trying to reach agreement, even if that relationship is based on seemingly surface level things.

If you are not a current senator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

Senate Committee on Finance

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
- Subcommittee on Children and Families

Committee on the Judiciary

If you are not currently a member of your party’s leadership in the U.S. Senate, would you be interested in joining the leadership? If so, in what role?

Chair of the Judiciary Committee, because judges are critically important and we need good, qualified judges.

Is there a particular senator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

Former U.S. Senator Tom Harkin, because he, like me, began his career at Legal Aide helping those who couldn't afford an attorney.

He continued his advocacy work all the way into the U.S. Senate, tirelessly working to get the Americans with Disabilities Act passed.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2020 Elections

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Footnotes

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Iowa's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Joni Ernst (R)

Chuck Grassley (R)

Representatives

District 1

Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R)

District 2

Ashley Hinson (R)

District 3

Zach Nunn (R)

District 4

Randy Feenstra (R)

Republican Party (6)