With Election Day looming a little more than a month away, the race for the newly-redistricted 4th Congressional District of Iowa is starting to heat up between the two candidates: Republican Rep. Steve King and Democrat Christie Vilsack.

The 4th District was created after the 2010 Census when Iowa lost its 5th District, the seat which King has had since 2002. Currently, Republican Rep. Tom Latham occupies the spot, but he has moved to the 3rd District to challenge the Democratic incumbent Leonard Boswell, instead of running against King.

The 4th District consists of 39 Iowa counties, making it the largest district, area-wise, in the state of Iowa. The district is located in the northwest and north central parts of Iowa, which includes Sioux City, Fort Dodge, Mason City and Ames. The new 4th District also contains 50 percent of the old 4th District and 46 percent of the old 5th District.

King is from Storm Lake, Iowa, and owns a construction company. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2002. King is a member of the Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement and the Subcommittee on the Constitution, both of which are part of the House Committee on the Judiciary. King is also involved with multiple subcommittees in the congressional agriculture and small business committees.

Vilsack is a native of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, where she taught middle school and high school for 18 years. She was also a reporter for Mt. Pleasant News. Vilsack is also the wife of Tom Vilsack, former Iowa governor and current U.S. secretary of agriculture.

Spencer Hughes, junior in speech communication and treasurer of Cyclones for Vilsack, said the latest poll has King leading by 2 percent more than Vilsack. In King’s last election, he won approximately 66 percent of the vote.

Due to the competitive nature of this particular race, more attention and publicity has been drawn in than ever before. It is also drawing attention because King is a well-known congressional figure and Vilsack is the wife of a former governor. The two have also received endorsements from big names in their respective parties.

“I’m glad this race is getting more attention because these people affect our daily lives,” said Kyle Etzel, junior in business and president of the ISU College Republicans.

Throughout his campaign, King has been stressing the economy and the need to balance the budget as his biggest concerns. He has also focused on agriculture policies like the Farm Bill and renewable resources that are produced in Iowa: biofuel and wind energy. He has also continued to campaign for his FairTax Bill, which would remove federal income taxes and replace them with a 23 percent sales tax.

During her campaign, Vilsack has set her focus on education issues, health care and the Farm Bill. Vilsack supports preserving the Pell Grant program and also the Income-Based Repayment Plan, a qualified repayment plan for student loans that is based on a person’s income.

Both candidates have drawn great criticism from the opposing side throughout the entire campaign.

“King has not represented the people of Iowa; King believes national issues are what best represent the people of Iowa,” Hughes said. “He also does not think before he speaks; the way he represents himself is embarrassing to the people of Iowa.”

In rebuttal, Etzel said: “In my opinion, voting for someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience and who has just moved to Ames to run for office is a concern; it’s a concern to me because it shows that she just wants to just better her own political career and is not worried about the people of the 4th District.”

Republicans and Democrats, though, have stressed Ames and Iowa State as a focal point in this election. Traditionally, Ames has been a left-leaning enclave, and Republicans like Etzel have recognized it has been a little harder to campaign in Ames. Hughes has pointed out voter turnout will be key.

“It will come down to how we mobilize Iowa State students to get to the polls,” said Hughes.

College Republicans and Cyclones for Vilsack have both been working the campaign trail: making phone calls, delivering campaign signs and working in the campaign offices. Currently, the College Republicans are trying to set up a debate between King and Vilsack at Iowa State.