Democrat Jim Mowrer of Des Moines came up short in his bid to oust Republican Third District Congressman David Young of Van Meter. “Sadly, our efforts have fallen short. But tonight, we can all hold our heads high and be very proud of what we’ve done and the campaign that we ran,” Mowrer told his supporters Tuesday night. Two years ago, Mowrer ran for congress in the fourth district, losing to Republican Steve King.

In his concession speech this time around, Mowrer acknowledged the rough night for Democrats by quoting Joe Biden. “The vice president has always told Americans that when we get knocked down, we get back up. That’s exactly what Iowa Democrats need to do. We’ve got to get back up. We’ve got to keep fighting,” Mowrer said.

The third congressional district covers 16 counties in southwest Iowa and includes the cities of Council Bluffs and Des Moines.

(Radio Iowa)

Iowa voters have overwhelmingly decided three Iowa Supreme Court justices may remain on the bench. Iowa judges are listed on the ballot in what are called “retention” elections once every eight years. In 2010, Iowa voters kicked three justices OFF the state supreme court. It was the backlash against the court’s 2009 ruling which legalized same-sex marriage in Iowa.

Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Cady is the person who wrote that 2009 ruling. Cady stood for retention this year and he won. Two other justices who were part of the court’s unanimous ruling in that same-sex marriage case also won their retention votes on Tuesday. All three got at last 64 percent of the vote.

The 2010 judicial retention election was high-profile, with opponents of the court’s same-sex marriage ruling spending thousands on a “vote no” campaign. There was little activity in this year’s judicial contests. A group called “Justice Not Politics” issued a statement early this morning. Connie Ryan, the group’s chair, says Iowans are proud of the state’s “fair and impartial courts” and the retention of the three justices is a hopeful sign politics won’t be “injected” into future retential elections.

(Radio Iowa)

Iowa Republicans had a big night. Donald Trump carried the state. Chuck Grassley easily won re-election. Rod Blum of Dubuque and David Young of Van Meter, the two Republican freshmen in Iowa’s congressional delegation, were victorious. And the entire legislative branch at the Iowa statehouse will be led by Republicans. Iowa G-O-P chairman Jeff Kaufmann was in a celebrating mood.

“We listen to the people and we respond to the people,” Kaufmann said. “And I know there’s are a lot of tears going on in the ivory towers of the universities, but guess what? The people also have the intelligence in this state!” Bill Dix, a state senator from Shell Rock, orchestrated the Republican effort to seize control of the Iowa Senate’s debate agenda from Democrats.

“I came in cautiously optimistic,” Dix said. “I know we had hard-working candidates who just were relentless and bottom line, at the end of the day, that’s what makes the difference.” Long-time Republican Governor Terry Branstad has gotten his wish for a Republican-led senate. “We thought we could maybe win five seats,” Branstad said. “We won six, so, it was a great night and I’m really looking forward to working with both the House and the Senate.”

Republicans kept their working majority in the Iowa House, too. Republicans were even able to dethrone the legislature’s top Democrat. Senator Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs — a 34-year veteran of the legislature — was defeated in his reelection bid. During an interview in early October, Gronstal argued Democratic incumbents could win by employing person-to-person tactics rather than spending “big money” on advertising.

“What power do we have? We have the power to run smart, savvy campaigns, knock on lots of doors and make personal contact and if we do that well, we can be proud of our effort,” Gronstal said, “regardless of what the outcome is.”

(Radio Iowa)

Iowa’s three Republican congressmen are headed back to Washington. Veteran Steve King easily defeated his Democratic challenger to win an eighth term in the U.S. House. King says it was a “low key” race. “Very, very low key,” King says. “I didn’t hear any issues that were brought forward by my opponent that got any traction at all.” First-term Congressman Rod Blum, of Dubuque, defeated Democratic challenger Monica Vernon of Cedar Rapids despite the Democratic voter registration edge in the district.

Another rookie Republican congressman — David Young of Van Meter — got reelected, too. Young spoke to supporters in Des Moines shortly after 10 o’clock. Young says no matter who is president or the speaker of the House, his focus will be on serving his constituents.  “We live in a great nation, founded on the First Amendment,” Young said. “We fled the monarchy of England for freedom of religion and I want to thank my Lord, Jesus Christ, for getting me through this day because it’s not easy and I lean on him.”

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:50 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republicans have won a majority in the Iowa Senate, giving the GOP control of both legislative chambers and the governor’s office. The 100-member House and 50-member Senate haven’t been controlled by the same party since the 2008 and 2009 sessions, when Democrats held majorities in both chambers.

ROCKWELL CITY, Iowa (AP) — At least 1,000 law enforcement officers and much of the small Iowa community of Rockwell City are gathering to mourn the death of 24-year-old police officer Justin Martin. The rookie officer died nearly a week after he and another officer were gunned down in their patrol cars in the Des Moines area. An Urbandale man is charged with first-degree murder in the Nov. 2 killings.

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota regulators are proposing a fine of at least $15,000 against the company building the four-state Dakota Access pipeline. The Public Service Commission said Monday in a complaint that a subsidiary of Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners didn’t get regulators’ approval to proceed with construction after artifacts were found last month. The company diverted construction and said in a statement that the company doesn’t think it did anything wrong and is working with the PSC.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Black Hawk County officials will pay $30,000 to a man who scuffled with an off-duty sheriff’s deputy after a traffic dispute. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to pay the money and settle a case filed by Edward Felts. He claimed deputy Richard Hoffman beat him during a 2015 incident, which happened after the men nearly crashed while driving. The men exited their vehicles, and after Felts head-butted Hoffman, the deputy took Felts to the ground.

(Rep=Republican) (I=Incumbent)

County Auditor:

(Rep) (I) Stephanie Burke – 4,367

County Sheriff:

(Rep) (I) Joseph Sampson – 4,556

Board of Supervisors/District 2:

(Rep) (I) Mike Olson – 747

Board of Supervisors/District 3:

(Rep) (I) Bryant Amos – 905

Board of Supervisors/District 5:

(Rep) (I) Donna Robinson – 835

Montgomery Co. Ag. Extension Council (elect 4):

Mike Thomas – 2,729

Karen Klocke – 2,788

Kelli Bucy – 2,617

Write-In (No other candidate filed) –

Montgomery Co. Hospital Trustees (elect 2) – 6 year term:

Roger J. Ehmke – 3,209

James A. Robinson – 3,017

Montgomery Co. Soil & Water Commissioner (elect 3) – 4 year term:

David Carbaugh – 2,912

Gary Querry – 2,991

Fred Hossle – 3,093

Frankfort Township Trustee (elect 2):

Rodney Hart – 96

Don Gohlinghorst – 99

Garfield Township Trustee (elect 2):

Gary Querry – 92

John Willms – 75

Grant Township Trustee (elect 2):

John Sunberg – 103

Dennis Carlson – 119

Lincoln Township Trustee (elect 2):

Bryan Jenkins – 67

None filed (Write-In) –

Pilot Grove Township Trustee (elect 2):

Ron Adams – 82

David W. Olson – 71

Red Oak Township Trustee (elect 2):

Howard O. Olson – 191

None filed (Write-In) – 12

Sherman Township Trustee (elect 2):

Daniel L. Phelps – 83

James E. Good – 63