In the race for Iowa’s newly redrawn 2nd Congressional District, Bettendorf attorney John Archer is considered a “young gun.” In his race to defeat third-term incumbent Democratic U.S. Congressman Dave Loebsack, the 40-year-old Archer has received extra assistance throughout his campaign from the Republican National Committee’s program to back candidates who are facing what it sees as a weak incumbent.

Archer is originally from Springfield, Ill., and received his undergraduate degree in political science and business administration from Illinois Wesleyan University and his law degree from Southern Illinois University. He has been the senior legal counsel at John Deere & Co. for the past 11 years while earning his MBA for the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business.

Archer has visited Newton and Jasper County noticeably less than his opponent during the 2012 campaign, but the three-year Pleasant Valley School Board member has developed a competitive ground game in Newton and the 2nd Congressional District.