Iowa Democrats are urging the national party to restore the state's traditional place as the first contest of the presidential primary season, even if the Democratic National Committee disagrees.

Why it matters: Iowa returning to the lead-off spot could scramble the 2028 presidential contest, and significantly affect who becomes the Democratic nominee.

State of play: Iowa's caucuses have propelled many candidates to the Democratic nomination, including Barack Obama, John Kerry and Jimmy Carter.

• But then-President Biden pushed Iowa and New Hampshire back on the Democrats' calendar in 2024 to move up South Carolina, which had sprung him to the 2020 nomination. His team argued that South Carolina's diverse electorate was a better early measure of party voters' sentiments than that of mostly white Iowa.
• The fight over Iowa's place on the calendar will provoke arguments of race, whether the state party can conduct the process after mishandling the 2020 caucuses, and Joe Biden's legacy given he reorganized the calendar to skip Iowa and New Hampshire.

Driving the news: State Rep. J. D. Scholten, who launched a campaign for U.S. Senate last month, told Axios he wants to see the caucuses restored.

The Democratic Leader of the Iowa State Assembly, Brian Meyer, told his local PBS affiliate the other week that "we need to bring back the Caucuses."

• "We on the national level are missing the Midwest common sense that Iowa has brought to those caucuses," he added.

Some potential 2028 Democratic candidates are already sensing that Iowa may be a factor again in the 2028 primary.

• Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg held a town hall in Iowa focused on veterans in May, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz visited the state in March.
• Buttigieg declined to comment and Walz did not respond.

Between the lines: Many Democrats have argued that Iowa should not go first because the state is 61% white and is not a good representative of the diversity of the Democratic Party.

But some Democrats think that argument is unnecessarily limiting the party.

• David Axelrod, who helped lead Obama's upset victory in the 2008 Iowa caucuses against Hillary Clinton, said that "Iowa made the Obama story possible. So I find it ironic when I hear people suggest that the state's relative lack of diversity should exclude it."

Go deeper

For the first time in years, Des Moines has experienced a decline in fire and emergency medical service calls — a change city officials attribute to targeted outreach efforts aimed at frequent 911 users and vulnerable populations.

Why it matters: The reduction could help conserve staff time and the department's budget as city leaders grapple with improving response times for more urgent calls.

By the numbers: The fire department's total calls in the first half of 2025 dropped about 2%, from 16,901 last year to 16,631 this year, fire chief John TeKippe told the City Council this week.

• That drop comes despite the addition of more than 130 new visits from the city's Mobile Integrated Health Care (MIHC) team, which launched last year.
• The team responds to people in their homes, connecting high-need people with care and social services before they require emergency transport.

State of play: The department has been experiencing an increase in calls for over a decade, peaking at around 39,000 last year.

• Part of the rise has been attributed to people who make calls that may not rise to an emergency level.

Stunning stat: The department identified 85 people responsible for 1,450 EMS calls in 2022.

Zoom in: The total cost of ambulance transports is generally more than $600.

• Insurance or user fees cover much of the costs, but property taxpayers have been covering hundreds of thousands of dollars in uncovered expenses annually for decades.

Reality check: Emergency officials are cautious about assuming the trend will continue, especially given the unpredictable nature of public health.

Yes, but: They're "very encouraged" by the initial few months of response, TeKippe said.

What's next: City leaders may scale or replicate the prevention efforts elsewhere, potentially applying to businesses or residents with repeated false alarm calls, TeKippe said.

The share of Iowa houses purchased by institutional investors dipped over the last year, mirroring a nationwide trend as the housing market cools.

Why it matters: Investors, who often compete with first-time buyers, have pulled back from the U.S. housing market in recent years.

By the numbers: In the DSM area, the share of homes sold to institutional investors dropped from 7.1% in the first quarter of 2024 to 6.1% in the same period this year, per ATTOM data shared with Axios.

• Statewide, the share dropped from 5.9% to 4.8%.

The fine print: ATTOM defines an institutional investor as a non-lending entity that purchases at least 10 properties in a calendar year.

The big picture Investors want to see strong population and job growth, solid rental yields, landlord-friendly regulations, affordability, and long-term appreciation potential, ATTOM CEO Rob Barber previously told Axios.

📣 Evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats warned conservatives that Democrat Rob Sand is a "very real opponent" for the state's highest office. (Des Moines Register)

🚗 The Fleur Drive Bridge has fully reopened five months earlier than expected after the completion of street and sewer reconstruction projects. (City of DSM)

💧A nearly $2 million project is launching across five counties to reduce nitrate runoff into the Beaver Creek Watershed, which flows into the Des Moines River. (Radio Iowa)

🏀 Caitlin Clark returned from a five-game absence due to a groin injury, but scored only 10 points as Indiana lost 80–61 to the Valkyries. (AP)

🎷 Hit reply and correctly guess Jason's cool spot by 4pm for a chance to win two tickets to one of the upcoming "Music in the Garden" concerts at the Greater DSM Botanical Garden.

• The winner will be named in tomorrow's newsletter.