Roxanne Conlin

My mother always told me it's when people get most desperate that their worst selves come out. Well, Iowa Republicans must be pretty desperate. With Roxanne Conlin giving Chuck Grassley the run of his life, Republican bloggers are taking to their computers to undermine Conlin the best way they can come up with… by ogling and leering at pictures of her and speculating about whether she's had plastic surgery.

As EMILY's List Political Director, I live and breathe polls: which candidate is up and which is down, which race is tightening, which congressional district is leaning Democratic this year.

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It’s a first for EMILY’s List: we’re asking you to choose which of our candidates will be featured in a special fundraising appeal in October. Just a few days in, the amount of responses has been amazing, and there are already a few break-out stars. Here’s a sneak peek at the ongoing tally – this graphic represents your voting so far, and you still have time to weigh in!

Roxanne Conlin's used to a challenge.

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We are seeing the ripple effect of Sarah Palin's influence in races where EMILY's List women and Democratic candidates are fighting hard to win seats in November. Over the weekend, Palin's operatives filed a financial report indicating that in the past three months, she has raised more money than in any other quarter since forming SarahPAC in January 2009 and has already given $87,500 to her endorsed candidates.

It’s a safe bet that Republican pundits are taking a second look at this year's Senate race in Iowa, where Roxanne Conlin is poised to give GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley the race of his life.

Grassley - the man who proclaimed President Obama was trying to "pull the plug on grandma" by reforming health care - is out of touch with the issues facing Iowan families.

We wanted to make sure you saw this great Q&A piece with Iowa Senate candidate Roxanne Conlin, highlighting Roxanne's economic plans, grassroots organizing, and Iowans' perception that GOP incumbent Chuck Grassley has "lost touch" with his constituents.

Here are some highlights:

The countdown until November 2 is constantly on my mind, but we have another important date quickly approaching: at midnight tonight, October 6, we will close the EMILY's List Community Choice contest. That means you have less than 24 hours to vote for your favorite EMILY's List candidate. The winning candidates will receive a special email appeal from EMILY's List on their behalf to help them fundraise in the critical final weeks.

The last few days at Netroots Nation 2010 in Las Vegas have been incredible. This conference teems with passion, energy, and ideas -- and we want to give you a slice of what we've experienced.

Conversation is constant here. We got to speak with attendees while at our EMILY's List booth at the exhibition all, meeting long-time supporters and sharing our mission with folks new to what we do -- and handed out some pretty cute notepads. At panel discussions and roundtable talks, we heard hopes, frustrations, and desire for more progressive action.