ISU alumnus and current Ames resident, Dane Nealson, has announced his decision to run for the Iowa House of Representatives.

Nealson is set to run against current Ames Democrat Beth Wessel-Kroeschell in House District 45.

Nealson graduated from Iowa State in 2010 with a degree in political science and a passion for local politics. Because of his major, Nealson said he was given the specifics on how a campaign is run, but it was the experience outside of the classroom that prepared him the most.

“You make more of a difference at a local level, and I think being involved with the political science department here, and a lot of the classes I had here, just kind of reaffirmed that,” Nealson said. “I think a lot of what prepares you to run for office isn’t necessarily what you learn in the classroom, it is what you learn outside of the classroom.”

During his years as an undergraduate Nealson was heavily involved with ISU College Republicans, student senate and community volunteering, and in his senior year he became the state chairman of the Iowa Federation of College Republicans, the statewide board for the College Republicans and did his internship as a clerk for the Iowa House of Representatives.

After graduation Nealson began right away working for a couple of presidential campaigns but decided to step away from the 80-hour workweeks and the 45-minute commute to get more involved locally.

In fall of 2011, a few friends confronted him about running for House District 45, but Nealson did not even consider the idea until the beginning of his newfound freedom after his work on the presidential campaign.

“The appeal of sitting on my back deck all summer and just reading a book, kicked back, has kind of a lot of appeal, but I decided I’d rather knock doors all summer,” Nealson said with a chuckle.

Jason Chrystal, Nealson’s faculty adviser during his years at Iowa State, was not surprised at all to hear Nealson was running for the House. Chrystal, an academic adviser for political science, said he believes his former pupil is “perfect for the position.”

“He has a big personality. When I first met him, it was really interesting because I knew that he was going to be someone that cannot stay uninvolved,” Chrystal said.

Nealson said neither age nor experience will be huge factors in his race. The real difference between Wessel-Kroeschell and himself, he said, are their stances on the issues.

On issues like property tax reform and the budget: “I am probably closer to what the people of Ames actually believe than [Wessel-Kroeschell] is,” Nealson said.

Nealson’s No. 1 priority is jobs for young people.

“What got me interested initially and is really why I am running is the fact so many young people leave Iowa. … They graduate, and there are no jobs for them in the field they studied,” Nealson said.

Nealson said his other concerns include lowering the general tax structure for property taxes, rising tuition and looking at the long term future of Iowa. “Specifically for Iowa State University, it is really important also that our tax base continues to grow,” he said.

Consistency is one of Nealson’s greatest strengths, Chrystal said.

“What he was running for in [ISU] College Republicans, and what he has talked about now in his campaign and what he has on his website, is what he was talking about back in 2009,” Chrystal said.

Chrystal said Nealson also has the advantage of not having anything holding him back and a lot of great ideas for the state of Iowa.

“He has got a lot of energy, and a lot of exuberance,” Chrystal said. “I think that he will go far in Iowa republican politics even if he is defeated because he is a hard worker and because he cares.”

Forrest Irvine, Nealson’s student co-chairman at Iowa State and junior in political science, said, “[Dane Nealson] has an uphill fight. There is no question about that, but I think that he has a work ethic to overcome that.”

Irvine met Nealson in 2010 while working on the Rick Perry campaign and said Nealson is really passionate about what he does, and believes youth excitement and youth involvement might be his greatest advantage.

“At the end of the day, if you are talking about what people care about and you have the right message, I think that wins out,” Nealson said.

His strategy for the upcoming months: knocking on every door in his district and listening to every person willing to talk.

“I know I am going to knock every door in my district. I am going to make every effort to meet every single person I can, call people, knock on their doors, send mail and all that kind of stuff that you do with an aggressor’s campaign and just really work hard; that is the big thing,” Nealson said. “If you are willing to work hard, anyone has a chance.”

“At the end of the day, if you are talking about what people care about and you have the right message, I think that wins out,” Nealson said. “It is going to be a lot of work, and I am under no delusion that it is going to be anything but that.”