Information provided by the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office indicated Tom Moore, a Republican from Griswold, has won a Special Election to fill a vacant Iowa House District 21 seat. The vacancy was created by the death in October, of Jack Drake, a Republican from Griswold.

According to the polls results, Moore received a total of 1,409 votes. His opponent, Democrat Tim Ennis, of Corning, received 853 votes. Both men were nominated to run in the Special Election by separate nominating conventions held last month.

The results are unofficial until the votes are canvassed.

By County, here is the vote break-down: (candidate/votes/% of votes cast)

Cass – Ennis 327 (30.94%)      Moore – 730 (69.06%)     [Write-In’s  2]

Adams – Ennis 255 (57.3%)    Moore – 189 (42.3%)

Pottawattamie – Ennis 16 (17.2%)    Moore – 77 (82.8%)

Union – Ennis 255 (38.2%)    Moore 413 61.8%)

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office released details on two recent arrests and one stolen vehicle recovery.

On December 5th at approximately 12:36pm the Sheriff’s Office recovered a 2002 Buick LeSabre that was reported stolen from Moline, IL.  The vehicle was found parked in the 400 block of East 6th Street in Villisca.  The theft is still being investigated by the Moline, IL Police Department and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.

On Tuesday, December 8th at 11:25am Officers arrested 26-year-old Mykel Allen Thoren of Atlantic on a Cass County Warrant for Failure to Appear on 3rd Degree Burglary and 3rd Degree Theft charges.  Thoren is being held on $10,000 bond.

Also Tuesday at 12:50pm Deputies arrested 54-year-old Ronald Dean Kammerer Jr. of Red Oak on a Pottawattamie County Warrant for Failure to Appear on non-payment of child support.  Kammerer Jr. is being held on $1,000 bond.

(updates previous version of this story, 12/9/15)

NEOLA, Iowa (AP) — A small western Iowa city will need help with emergency services from neighboring communities after 12 members of its volunteer fire department resigned. A consultant for the city of Neola says the firefighters quit Monday night and four remain. Clint Fichter says Neola will be covered temporarily by fire departments in Minden and Underwood. Fichter says he expects the city to hire new firefighters over several months.

A state audit report this year said a former city clerk for Neola misspent more than $230,000 over five years. About $47,000 was linked to the fire department’s bank account. The newspaper reports emails between Neola’s acting fire chief and the mayor-elect showed suggestions by the mayor to streamline how firefighters would be hired in the future.

A spokesman for more than 50 small-scale or “craft” breweries in Iowa is warning the proposed merger of the world’s two largest beer companies could endanger the craft beer industry.  “As the craft brewing industry continues to represent true job and sales growth in an otherwise flat sector, craft breweries may encounter problems if this acquisition proceeds.” J. Wilson of Prescott, was hired last year to be the coordinator for the Iowa Brewers Guild. He’s in Washington, D.C. today (Tuesday), testifying at a U.S. Senate hearing examining the merger between Anheuser-Busch InBev — the maker of Budweiser — and S-A-B-Miller.

“If this deal is allowed to proceed, growing craft breweries in Iowa and elsewhere fear difficulty with access to both market and raw materials,” Wilson says. Craft beer now accounts for 11 percent of total beer sales, but Wilson warns Anheuser-Busch has great influence in the distribution chain and could try to squeeze out that competition.

“With deep pockets already allowing ABI to hold sway over many wholesalers on marketing incentives, the amount of influence a combined company of this magnitude would have over market access is startling,” Wilson says. Anheuser-Busch has purchased 12 independent distributors in nine states since 2012. Wilson says Busch family members own five other distributorships.

“While market access is an on-going battle that small craft brewers have infiltrated by offering a wide range of locally-produced, flavor-forward products, the ability to produce or package them could soon be hindered if the merger is allowed,” Wilson says. “This mega-brewery would have an even greater impact on brewing inputs such as malted barley and hops and packaging materials like bottles and cans. The hops supply is already tenuous and while malt production can easily be increased, expansion of hops acreage is costly and hop plants take three years to reach maturity.”

Wilson is urging federal officials to force Anheuser-Busch to sell off the wholesale distributorships and examine how the merger would impact the supply of raw materials.  “I favor healthy competition, but a merger of this magnitude could impact supply access and threaten the wholesale tier of the system,” Wilson says “I urge you to protect competition and consumer choice.” If the two beer companies are allowed to merge, the new company would control a third of the world’s beer suppply, including brands like Corona, Stella Artois, Grolsch as well as Budweiser.

Anheuser-Busch is already the leading beer company in the U.S., Mexico and Brazil. By acquiring S-A-B Miller, it will grow in Latin America and Africa at a time when the tastes of U.S. consumers are shifting to craft beers and cocktails.

(Radio Iowa)