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NOW. THREE DAYS AFTER GOVERNOR KIM REYNOLDS ANNOUNCED SHE WILL NOT RUN FOR REELECTION. WE’RE HEARING FROM THE MAN WHO GAVE THE GOVERNOR HER START IN A STATEWIDE OFFICE. ����vlog CHIEF POLITICAL REPORTER AMANDA ROOKER JOINS US LIVE AT THE STATE HOUSE TONIGHT. AMANDA, YOU SAT DOWN WITH FORMER GOVERNOR TERRY BRANSTAD FOR HIS TAKE ON REYNOLDS LEGACY AND WHAT COMES NEXT FOR THE STATE. THAT’S RIGHT. BEN, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA TERRY BRANSTAD SAYS HE FEELS PROUD TO HAVE PICKED KIM REYNOLDS AS HIS LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR BACK WHEN HE WAS RUNNING TO LEAD THE STATE. I SAT DOWN WITH HIM TO TALK ABOUT REYNOLDS DECISION NOT TO RUN AGAIN AND WHAT HE THINKS IOWA NEEDS NEXT IN ITS NEXT LEADER. LIKE MOST OTHER IOWANS, I WAS REALLY SURPRISED. I THINK I THINK SHE’S DONE A GREAT JOB. FORMER IOWA GOVERNOR TERRY BRANSTAD SAYS WHILE AT FIRST CAUGHT OFF GUARD, HE DOES UNDERSTAND KIM REYNOLDS CHOICE NOT TO RUN FOR REELECTION AFTER LEADING THE STATE FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES HIMSELF, BRANSTAD SAYS THE JOB DOES TAKE TIME AWAY FROM FAMILY. SHE’S GOT A LOT OF GRANDCHILDREN, AND SHE’S ALSO GOT ELDERLY PARENTS WITH, I THINK, SOME HEALTH ISSUES. AND HER HUSBAND HAS HAD AS WELL. BUT SHE’S DONE A GREAT JOB. I TRULY APPRECIATE THE CONFIDENCE. BRANSTAD PICKED REYNOLDS AS HIS LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR BACK IN 2010. AT THE TIME, SHE WAS A RELATIVELY UNKNOWN STATE SENATOR. BUT BRANSTAD SAYS REYNOLDS IMPRESSED HIM YEARS PRIOR WHEN SHE WAS CLARK COUNTY TREASURER. HE SAYS TO INCREASE GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY, REYNOLDS WANTED TO LET IOWANS RENEW THEIR DRIVER’S LICENSES AT THEIR COUNTY TREASURER’S OFFICE. WE DID, I THINK, SIX RURAL COUNTIES IN SOUTHWEST IOWA. IT WAS SO POPULAR. IT’S NOW BEING DONE IN, I THINK, 83 COUNTIES. AND SO THAT’S WHERE SHE GOT MY ATTENTION. THE TWO SERVED TOGETHER FOR MORE THAN SIX YEARS. IN 2017, REYNOLDS BECAME GOVERNOR WHEN BRANSTAD WAS TAPPED TO SERVE AS THE U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA AND THE CONSTITUTION. BRANSTAD SAYS SHE HELPED BUILD THE PARTY, POINTING TO IOWA’S NOW ALL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION AND SUPERMAJORITIES IN THE IOWA HOUSE AND SENATE. HOW DOES THE REPUBLICAN PARTY MAINTAIN MOMENTUM WITHOUT KIM REYNOLDS AT THE HELM? WELL, IT’S GOING TO BE DIFFICULT BECAUSE KIM REYNOLDS WAS A VERY HARD WORKING, POPULAR GOVERNOR. IS THERE A REPUBLICAN YOU’D LIKE TO SEE RUN FOR GOVERNOR? WELL, YES, BUT I’M NOT READY TO SAY THAT YET. YOU’RE GOING TO WAIT TILL. I’LL WAIT UNTIL I’LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS AND SEE WHO’S RUNNING. HE SAYS THE RIGHT CANDIDATE NEEDS TO WIN THE PRIMARY WITHOUT ALIENATING THE IOWANS WHO DON’T VOTE FOR THEM. I HOPE WE’LL NOMINATE. REPUBLICANS WILL NOMINATE A CANDIDATE THAT CERTAINLY HAS A CONSERVATIVE PHILOSOPHY, BUT ALSO IS VERY OPEN TO MEETING WITH ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE AND LISTENING TO THEIR CONCERNS. SO WE NEED SOMEBODY THAT’S HARDWORKING AND SINCERE. NOW, BRANSTAD LED IOWA FOR MORE THAN 22 YEARS, MAKING HIM THE LONGEST SERVING GOVERNOR IN AMERICAN HISTORY. BUT HE DID SERVE NONCONSECUTIVE TERMS. SO I ASKED HIM IF HE WAS THINKING AT ALL ABOUT RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR AGAIN. HE SAID HE IS NOT GOING TO THROW HIS HAT IN THE RING THIS TIME, BUT HE DOES EXPECT A VERY CROWDED PRIMARY RACE FOR THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION. LIVE FROM THE IOWA STATE HOUSE AMANDA ROOKER ����vlog EIGHT NEWS. IOWA’S NEWS LEADER. ALL RIGHT, SO WE CAN CROSS ONE PERSON OFF THE LIST. AMANDA. THANK YOU. THERE’S ONLY ONE REPUBLICAN WHO HAS OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED THEIR CAMPAIGN. THAT’S BRAD SHERMAN. HE’S A FORMER STATE REPRESENTATIVE FROM WILLIAMSBURG, THE FIRST DEMOCRAT TO ANNOUNCE HIS KENDALL PALS DAHL FROM WEBSTER CITY. HE HAS NEVER HELD PUBLIC OFFICE. WE DID REACH OUT TO HIM TODAY AS WELL, BUT WE DID NOT HEAR BACK. ����vlog SPOKE TO REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRATIC POLITICAL STRATEGIST ABOUT HOW IOWANS WILL REMEMBER GOVERNOR REYNOLDS ONCE HER TIME IN OFFICE COMES TO AN END. SHE PUT A VERY CONSERVATIVE SOCIAL AGENDA, YOU KNOW, AT THE TOP OF HER PRIORITY LIST IN THE LEGISLATURE, WHETHER IT WAS ABORTION OR OTHER THINGS. AND SHE REALLY DID THAT AT THE EXPENSE OF IOWA’S ECONOMY. IOWA’S ECONOMY IS NOT IN A GOOD PLACE RIGHT NOW. WE’RE VERY SLOW ON GROWTH. I THINK WE’RE THE 49TH STATE IN THE IN THE COUNTRY WHEN IT COMES TO ECONOMIC GROWTH, THE STATE OF THE OVERALL ECONOMY IN IOWA, IT’S BEEN MORE DYNAMIC. GOVERNOR REYNOLDS HAS HAD A HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENTS TAKING PERSONAL TAX RATES FROM 9%, DOWN BELOW 4%, LOWERING CORPORATE TAX RATES AND, YOU KNOW, MAKING HISTORIC INVESTMENTS IN EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, AS WELL. AND YOU CAN FIND THE ENTIRE CONVERSATION ABOUT THE UPCOMING CHANGE IN IOWA’S LEADERSHIP ON OU