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An Ottumwa ophthalmologist made her history-changing quest official this morning.

Dr. Mariannette Miller-Meeks announced that she will seek the Republican nomination in Iowa's 2nd Congressional District. The retired Army Reserve lieutenant colonel will first face fellow Republicans Peter Teahen of Cedar Rapids and Lee Harder of Hillsboro in a primary contest before facing incumbent Congressman Dave Loebsack of Mount Vernon. If successful in both the June primary and November general election, Miller-Meeks would become the first woman ever sent by Iowans to Congress.

During her bid announcement this morning, Miller-Meeks seemed focused on the general election contest.

"We have a congressman who campaigned in 2006 as an 'agent of change,'" she said. "Health care costs are still spiraling out of control; reimbursement rates for our rural areas are still lagging; fundamental earmark and spending reform is blocked; our borders are still porous and our national security threatened; and our Social Security system is closer to financial calamity. The only thing that has changed in the last two years is our Congressman. He's morphed from an agent of change to an agent of the status quo."

She believes her experiences as a doctor, veteran and nurse give her a unique perspective on how to solve problems facing Iowa.

"My life's experiences have taught me to think critically about the issues, to provide independent solutions and, most importantly, to be honest and straightforward in my advice. That is the way I will conduct myself as a representative in Congress, and I think the people of the 2nd District deserve nothing less," she said.

Miller-Meeks is a resident of Ottumwa, and is the first woman and immediate past president of the Iowa Medical Society. She served for eight years as a surgical nurse in the Army and for 14 years as a doctor in the Army Reserve. She is a 1976 graduate of Texas Christian University and a 1986 graduate of the University of Texas Medical School. She completed her residency in ophthalmology at the University of Iowa in 1991 before joining the faculty of the University of Michigan. In 1994, she was recruited back to the University of Iowa and directed the primary eye care and cataract services there until joining Dr. Norman Hutchison and Dr. Gregory Thorgaard in 1997.

She and her husband, Curt, have two sons -- one a senior at Ottumwa High School and another studying at Colgate University in New York. More information can be found on her campaign website.