Iowa primaries finalize Statehouse races as legislative leaders look to November

Only 8% of Iowa registered voters participated in the June 4 primary election. Shown is the polling place at First Christian Church in Perry. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

With the primary election finished, incumbent state lawmakers and newcomers aiming to fill vacancies who won in state House and Senate races Tuesday are now preparing for the general election campaign season.

The primary election determined which candidates will appear on ballots in the Nov. 5 general election. Though candidates from both parties went unopposed in many of the state legislative races, voters in some districts chose nominees for open seats following retirements, while others decided races against sitting lawmakers.

Iowans also voted in contested primaries in three of Iowa’s four congressional districts. However, turnout was low. Only 8% — 183,630 registered voters — participated, according to the Iowa Secretary of State’s office. It’s a sharp decrease from primaries in 2020 and 2022 when 522,000 and 356,000 voters cast their ballots in primary elections, the two highest primary turnouts since 1994.

With the primaries finalized, candidates are preparing for the November 2024 election. Democrats are hoping to pick up seats and get some control at the Statehouse where a Republican trifecta currently holds power. Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, won reelection in 2022, and Republicans hold a supermajority in the Senate and majority in the House.

House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst said in May that this year’s Democratic primaries show there is enthusiasm for winning back the Legislature from GOP control following measures like Reynolds’ private school scholarship program, the state’s six-week abortion ban and the law making changes to Iowa’s Area Education Agencies.

“Everywhere I go, rural, urban, suburban — Iowans are really fed up with politics,” Konfrst said. “They’re really sick of people making decisions based on politics instead of what’s right for Iowans. … I think what we’re hearing a lot out there is, ‘this isn’t the Iowa I grew up in, and it’s time to bring some balance back.’”

But House Speaker Pat Grassley said Statehouse Republicans have delivered on their promises to voters — and plan to use showcase their legislative history win more seats in the general election.

“Iowa House Republicans have lowered taxes, raised teacher pay, removed sexually explicit material from school libraries and delivered on even more common-sense policies,” Grassley said in a statement to the Iowa Capital Dispatch. “Our track record of delivering results for Iowans is going to tough to beat this November.”

Here are results from some of the highest profile state legislative primaries Tuesday:

House District 34

The four-way race in the Democratic primary for House District 34, encompassing part of the city of Des Moines, ended with Pastor Rob Johnson winning the nomination with 43% of the vote.

The primary comes after longtime Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, announced earlier this year he was retiring from the Legislature. Abdul-Samad endorsed Johnson in February, as did other Iowa Democrats including auditor Rob Sand and Des Moines City Council member Josh Mandelbaum.

Johnson ran against three other Democratic candidates: Samy El-Baroudi, a teacher; John R. Campbell Jr., a community and labor advocate, and Dudley Muhammad, a small business owner. El-Baroudi earned 40% of the vote, Campell Jr. 14% and Muhammad 3% in the primary election.

Johnson released a statement thanking his supporters and saying that after after a “brief break” on Tuesday, his campaign is shifting focus to the general election.

“We believe that Iowa House District 34 will change the future of this state,” Johnson said. “We believe that if we are able to reach every voter in this district we will keep public money in public schools, we will protect reproductive freedoms, we will fully fund mental healthcare and we will bring back balance to our state government.”

In November, Johnson will face Danielle Duggan, a Republican candidate who ran unopposed in the primary.

House District 28

Rep. David Young, R-Van Meter, defeated his primary challenger, Chad Brewbaker.

Young received 89% of the vote, according to Secretary of State’s office results. Young first took the seat in 2022 after losing his election for Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District seat to former Rep. Cindy Axne in 2018 and in a 2020 rematch.

Young will face Democrat Laura Snider, who ran uncontested in the primary, in the general election.

House District 53

In House District 53, covering areas including Grinnell, Tama and Montezuma, Tommy Hexter won the primary against candidates Jennifer Wrage and John Anderson.

The Secretary of State’s office data shows Hexter, a rural organizer and educator with the Iowa Farmers Union and director of FarmToTable, a small food business in Grinnell, winning with nearly 59% of the vote. Wrage, a retired teacher from Gladbrook, received 33% in the election, and Anderson, a Tama resident, earned 8%.

Hexter will face Rep. Dean Fisher, R-Montour, who has held the seat for a decade.

House District 22

Samantha Fett won the Republican primary against former state Rep. Garrett Gobble, R-Ankeny, in the district currently represented by Rep. Stan Gustafson, R-Norwalk.

House District 22 covers Norwalk as well as Carlisle, Cumming and New Virginia. Fett, a chapter leader for the conservative organization Moms for Liberty and a former Carlisle School Board member, won 55.5% of against Gobble at 44.5%.

Fett will face Democrat Rory Taylor, who went uncontested, in the general election.

House District 64

Jason Gearhart won the Republican primary election for House District 64 against Douglas Wolfe.

The district is currently represented by Rep. Anne Osmundson, R-Volga. Gearhart, a military veteran, told the Waukon Standard that he plans to focus on public education support in rural areas if elected. He earned 55% of the vote according to Secretary of State’s office results, while Douglas Wolfe, a business owner and real estate broker, won 45%. No Democrat is on the ballot for the seat.

Senate District 16

Sen. Claire Celsi, D-Des Moines, won the Democratic primary for her seat covering West Des Moines, Windsor Heights, and Clive as well as a portion of Dallas County.

Unofficial results show Celsi defeating challenger Julie Lasche Brown, former chair of the West Des Moines Democrats, in a 81%-19% race. There is no Republican candidate on the ballot for the seat.

Senate District 26

Republican candidate Kara Warme won with nearly 54% of the vote against Gannon Hendrick in the Tuesday election.

The Senate District 26 seat is currently held by Sen. Jeff Edler, R-State Center, who served in the Senate since 2016. Warme, the chief development officer for YSS — formerly Youth & Shelter Services — and member of the Iowa Rural Development Council and Farm Bureau, defeated Hendrick, a combat veteran, in the primary. She will next face Mike Wolfe, a Democrat who has spoken against Republican public education policy, in the general election.

Senate District 30

Incumbent Sen. Waylon Brown, R-Osage, won his race to become the Republican nominee for Senate District 30, representing Mason City, Northwood and Osage.

Brown faced a challenge from Doug Campbell, a retired pharmacist, who advocated against carbon capture pipeline projects in his campaign. The incumbent representative won with roughly 53% — 2,546 votes — to Campbell’s 47% with 2,273 votes. Brown will face Democrat Richard Lorence in the general election.

Senate District 38

There was a three-way race in the Republican primary for Senate District 38 as candidates sought to take on Sen. Eric Giddens, D-Cedar Falls, the incumbent representative. The district covers Cedar Falls and towns including Traer and Hudson.

Former Cedar Falls City Council member David Sires won the race against James McCullagh, a business owner and entrepreneur, and former Waterloo City Council member Steve Schmitt.

Sires won with 59%, according to Secretary of State’s office results, with Schmitt at 27% and McCullagh at 14%.

Correction: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of David Sires’ surname.

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