Reynolds, Grassley are re-elected, Voith wins, EMS Essential Service vote falters

By Tyler Anderson

tyler@calhouncountyphoenix.com

All throughout Calhoun County, the state of Iowa and the United States, voters went to the polls and casted their ballots, selecting their candidates of choice. 

The process then shifts over to election officials and county auditors, who tally the votes, before shifting over to the secretary of state. Above all, the people have spoken through the voting booth.

After a long day, Calhoun County submitted their tallies into the Iowa Secretary of State at approximately 9:40 p.m., yielding results from months of public relations moves, meetings and campaigning. 

On Tuesday evening, the county remained staunch territory of the Republican Party while Public Measure A, the Calhoun County EMS Essential Service vote, was defeated. The Essential Service vote was downed by a 17 percent margin, as 41.2 percent of voters said "yes," while 58.6 percent of voters decided to go with "no."

Alongside Public Measure A, the most notable race was for the position of Calhoun County Recorder, where challenger Cathy Voith (57.6 percent) defeated incumbent Kathy Jurries (42.3 percent) by a 15.3 percent margin.

Public Measure B, which would authorize a hotel and motel tax, 55.4 percent of voters decided "yes" and 44.9 percent opted for "no." The difference between "yes" and "no" was a mere 141 votes.

Please note that these results are unofficial until the Calhoun County Board of Supervisors canvass and accept the results in their next meeting, slated for next Tuesday at the Calhoun County Courthouse in Rockwell City.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and Lieutenant Governor Adam Gregg cruised past Democrat Deidre DeJear (Eric Van Lancker) and Libertarian Rick Stewart (Marco Battaglia) in the county, and easily earned re-election from voters across the state. 

In the Federal races, U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) won his eighth term by defeating challenger Michael Franken of the Democratic Party, while U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra (R-Hull) beat Democratic challenger Ryan Melton and Bryan Jack Holder of the Liberty Caucus in a proverbial landslide for Iowa's Fourth Congressional Seat. 

Secretary of State Paul Pate (Republican Party) had no issues with challenger Joel Miller (Democratic Party), while Roby Smith (Republican) unseated longtime Treasurer of State Michael Fitzgerald (Democrat) in both county and state. Todd Halbur (Republican) carried Calhoun County and over incumbent Rob Sand (Democrat) in the race for Auditor of State.

While it appeared that Halbur would claim the State Auditor position heading into Wednesday, Sand rallied back overnight to win by a slim 50.1 to 49.8 percent margin.

Mike Naig (Republican) easily won re-election over John Norwood (Democrat) in the Secretary of Agriculture race, while Brenna Bird (Republican) narrowly defeated Tom Miller (Democrat) in the Attorney General race. In Calhoun County, Bird won a sizable victory over Miller, who was the longest tenured State Attorney General in the United States.

State Senator Tim Kraayenbrink (R-Fort Dodge) and State Representative Mike Sexton (R-Rockwell City) went unchallenged for District 4 and District 7, respectively. Constitutional Amendment 1, which further exercises the right to keep and bear arms, easily won in both Calhoun County and in Iowa.

In the county races, challenger Cathy Voith (Republican) knocked off incumbent Kathy Jurries (Democrat) for the position of County Recorder. Voters then re-elected Scott Jacobs (Board of Supervisors, District 2), Lori Erkenbrack (County Treasurer) and Tina Meth-Farrington (County Attorney). 

Public Measure A was soundly defeated, while Public Measure B narrowly shifted to "yes."

Overall, Calhoun County saw nearly 60 percent of its 6,721 registered voters take to the polls. It was a little less for Iowa as a whole, with nearly 55 percent of the 2.2 million registered voters casting their ballots in the General Election of 2022.