2014 Iowa elections

A general election was held in the U.S. state of Iowa on November 4, 2014. All of Iowa's executive officers were up for election as well as a United States Senate seat, all four of Iowa's seats in the United States House of Representatives, 25 (half) of the seats in the Iowa Senate, and all 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives. Primary elections were held on June 3, 2014.[1]

Governor and lieutenant governor

Incumbent Republican Governor Terry Branstad ran for re-election to a second consecutive and sixth overall term as governor.[2]

He was challenged in the Republican primary by Tom Hoefling, a political activist and the America's Party and American Independent Party nominee for President in 2012.[3]

State Senator Jack Hatch ran for the Democrats.[4]

In Iowa, nominees for lieutenant governor are chosen at party conventions. They then run on a ticket with the gubernatorial nominee. Incumbent Republican Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds is running for re-election to a second term in office.[5]

Iowa gubernatorial election, 2014[6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Terry Branstad/Kim Reynolds (incumbent)	666,023	59.0
	Democratic	Jack Hatch/Monica Vernon	420,778	37.3
	Libertarian	Lee Deakins Hieb/Tim Watson	20,319	1.8
	New Independent	Jim Hennager/Mary Krieg	10,582	0.9
	Iowa	Jonathan R. Narcisse/Michael Richards	10,239	0.9
	n/a	Write-ins	1,093	0.1
Total votes			1,129,034	100.0
	Republican hold

Attorney General

Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Tom Miller, who has served in the position since 1995, and previously from 1979 to 1991, ran for re-election to a sixth consecutive and ninth overall term in office.[7]

Attorney and lobbyist, and future Lieutenant Governor of Iowa, Adam Gregg ran for the Republican Party.[8]

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Tom Miller (D)	Adam Gregg (R)	Other	Undecided
Public Policy Polling	November 1–3, 2014	1,265	± 2.8%	55%	36%	—	10%
Iowa Poll	October 28–31, 2014	701	± 3.7%	50%	39%	2%	9%
Suffolk University	October 11–14, 2014	500	± 4.4%	55%	31%	—	14%
Public Policy Polling	September 25–28, 2014	1,192	± 2.8%	53%	33%	—	14%
Suffolk	August 23–26, 2014	500	± 4%	48%	28%	—	24%
Public Policy Polling	August 22–24, 2014	915	± 3.2%	55%	31%	—	14%

Iowa Attorney General election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tom Miller (incumbent)	616,711	56.1
	Republican	Adam Gregg	481,046	43.8
	n/a	Write-ins	1,249	0.1
Total votes			1,099,006	100.0
	Democratic hold

Secretary of State

Incumbent Republican Secretary of State Matt Schultz, who has served in the position since 2011, did not run for re-election to a second term in office. He instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for Iowa's 3rd congressional district.[9]

Former Republican Secretary of State Paul Pate[10] and Democratic political consultant and former gubernatorial aide Brad Anderson are running.[11]

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Paul Pate (R)	Brad Anderson (D)	Other	Undecided
Public Policy Polling	November 1–3, 2014	1,265	± 2.8%	38%	44%	6%[12]	13%
Iowa Poll	October 28–31, 2014	701	± 3.7%	44%	41%	3%	12%
Loras College	October 21–24, 2014	1,121	± 2.93%	39%	40%	1%	20%
Gravis Marketing	October 20–21, 2014	964	± 3%	38%	42%	—	19%
Suffolk University	October 11–14, 2014	500	± 4.4%	33%	32%	4%[13]	32%
Gravis Marketing	September 29–30, 2014	522	± 4%	40%	40%	—	21%
Public Policy Polling	September 25–28, 2014	1,192	± 2.8%	36%	33%	6%[12]	25%
Suffolk	August 23–26, 2014	500	± 4%	31%	31%	4%[14]	33%
Public Policy Polling	August 22–24, 2014	915	± 3.2%	35%	34%	7%[15]	24%
Gravis Marketing	July 17–18, 2014	1,179	± 3%	38%	38%	—	24%
Public Policy Polling	May 15–19, 2014	914	± 3.3%	32%	34%	—	34%

Iowa Secretary of State election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Paul Pate	529,275	48.5
	Democratic	Brad Anderson	509,202	46.6
	Libertarian	Jake Porter	32,889	1.8
	New Independent	Spencer Highland	19,945	1.8
	n/a	Write-ins	769	0.1
Total votes			1,092,080	100.0
	Republican hold

Treasurer

Incumbent Democratic State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald, who has served in the position since 1983, is running for re-election to a ninth term in office.

The Republican nominee is Sam Clovis, a radio host who finished second in the Senate primary, before being nominated as the Republican candidate for treasurer.[16][7]

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Michael Fitzgerald (D)	Sam Clovis (R)	Other	Undecided
Public Policy Polling	November 1–3, 2014	1,265	± 2.8%	48%	38%	5%[17]	8%
Loras College	October 21–24, 2014	1,121	± 2.93%	47%	35%	1%	17%
Gravis Marketing	October 20–21, 2014	964	± 3%	46%	33%	—	21%
Suffolk University	October 11–14, 2014	500	± 4.4%	47%	32%	3%[17]	19%
Gravis Marketing	September 29–30, 2014	522	± 4%	48%	32%	—	20%
Public Policy Polling	September 25–28, 2014	1,192	± 2.8%	47%	35%	5%[17]	13%
Suffolk	August 23–26, 2014	500	± 4%	41%	28%	2%[17]	29%
Public Policy Polling	August 22–24, 2014	915	± 3.2%	47%	33%	5%[17]	16%
Gravis Marketing	July 17–18, 2014	1,179	± 3%	50%	34%	—	17%

Iowa State Treasurer election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Michael Fitzgerald (incumbent)	576,942	52.9
	Republican	Sam Clovis	476,633	43.7
	Libertarian	Keith Laube	36,945	3.4
	n/a	Write-ins	670	0.1
Total votes			1,091,190	100.0
	Democratic hold

Auditor

Incumbent Republican State Auditor Mary Mosiman, who was appointed to the position in 2013 after incumbent State Auditor David A. Vaudt resigned, is running for election to a first full term in office.[18]

Attorney and former Des Moines School Board member Jon Neiderbach is running for the Democrats.[19]

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Mary Mosiman (R)	Jon Neiderbach (D)	Other	Undecided
Public Policy Polling	November 1–3, 2014	1,265	± 2.8%	46%	41%	—	14%
Loras College	October 21–24, 2014	1,121	± 2.93%	37%	30%	2%	30%
Suffolk University	October 11–14, 2014	500	± 4.4%	40%	35%	—	25%
Public Policy Polling	September 25–28, 2014	1,192	± 2.8%	41%	35%	—	24%
Suffolk	August 23–26, 2014	500	± 4%	32%	30%	—	39%
Public Policy Polling	August 22–24, 2014	915	± 3.2%	39%	35%	—	26%

Iowa State Auditor election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mary Mosiman (incumbent)	604,103	56.9
	Democratic	Jon Neiderbach	509,202	46.6
	n/a	Write-ins	1,477	0.1
Total votes			1,062,105	100.0
	Republican hold

Secretary of Agriculture

Incumbent Republican Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey, who has served in the position since 2007, is running for re-election to a third term in office.[20]

Polk County Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioner Sherrie Taha is running for the Democrats.[21]

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Bill Northey (R)	Sherrie Taha (D)	Other	Undecided
Public Policy Polling	November 1–3, 2014	1,265	± 2.8%	51%	33%	5%[22]	10%
Loras College	October 21–24, 2014	1,121	± 2.93%	49%	29%	2%	20%
Suffolk University	October 11–14, 2014	500	± 4.4%	52%	30%	2%[22]	16%
Public Policy Polling	September 25–28, 2014	1,192	± 2.8%	49%	29%	6%[22]	15%
Suffolk	August 23–26, 2014	500	± 4%	41%	28%	2%[22]	29%
Public Policy Polling	August 22–24, 2014	915	± 3.2%	46%	28%	6%[22]	19%

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Bill Northey (incumbent)	675,781	62.2
	Democratic	Sherrie Taha	370,209	34.1
	New Independent	Levi Benning	39,349	3.6
	n/a	Write-ins	891	0.1
Total votes			1,086,230	100.0
	Republican hold

United States Senate

Incumbent Democratic Senator Tom Harkin is retiring rather than run for re-election to a sixth term in office.[23]

U.S. Representative Bruce Braley is the only Democratic to file to run and thus the de facto nominee.[24]

Five Republicans filed to run: radio host Sam Clovis,[25] State Senator Joni Ernst,[26] former CEO of Reliant Energy Mark Jacobs,[27] businessman Scott Schaben[28] and former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa and nominee for Treasurer of Iowa in 2002 Matthew Whitaker.[29]

United States Senate election in Iowa, 2014[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Joni Ernst	588,575	52.1
	Democratic	Bruce Braley	494,370	43.8
	Independent	Rick Stewart	26,815	2.4
	Libertarian	Douglas Butzier	8,232	0.7
	Independent	Bob Quast	5,873	0.5
	Independent	Ruth Smith	4,724	0.4
	n/a	Write-Ins	1,111	0.1
Total votes			1,129,700	100.0
	Republican gain from Democratic

United States House of Representatives

All of Iowa's four seats in the United States House of Representatives will be up for election in 2014 and are contested.

Iowa General Assembly

The 25 odd-numbered Iowa Senate seats are up for election in 2014, as are all 100 Iowa House seats. As of the primary filing deadline for the two major parties, there are 11 Senate seats and 58 House seats that only have candidates from one party, though several of these seats have contested primaries.[31] These numbers are from the primary election candidate listing,[32] so do not take into account candidates nominated by third parties, candidates nominated by petition, or candidates nominated by a major party after the primary. Such candidates file during the general election filing period, which runs from July 28 – August 15, 2014.[33]

References

1. "Branstad open to considering run-off election law change". The Gazette. November 18, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
2. "Governor Terry Branstad announces gubernatorial run, tours Iowa". KWWL. Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
3. "HAYWORTH: Republican Hoefling aiming to challenge Branstad in 2014". Sioux City Journal. March 4, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
4. Noble, Jason (September 16, 2013). "State Sen. Jack Hatch officially enters 2014 race for Iowa governor". The Des Moines Register. Archived from the original on September 16, 2013. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
5. "Iowa Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds expected to be No. 2 on GOP ticket". The Gazette. January 21, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
6. "Iowa General Election 2014". Iowa Secretary of State. 2014-11-04. Archived from the original on 2014-12-13. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
7. "Final Candidate Listing by Office" (PDF). Iowa Secretary of State. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
8. "Lobbyist Adam Gregg to run for Iowa attorney general". The Des Moines Register. June 2, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
9. Jacobs, Jennifer (January 9, 2014). "Elections chief Matt Schultz jumps into race for Congress". Des Moines Register. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
10. "Paul Pate Announces Bid for Secretary of State". KCRG.com. January 9, 2014. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
11. "Democrat announces bid for Iowa secretary of state". WCF Courier. January 11, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
12. Spencer Highland (NIP) 3%, Jake Porter (L) 3%
13. Spencer Highland (NIP) 2%, Jake Porter (L) 1%
14. Spencer Highland (NIP) 3%, Jake Porter (L) 1%
15. Spencer Highland (NIP) 5%, Jake Porter (L) 2%
16. http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/elections/2014/06/13/sam-clovis-treasurer/10417859/
17. Keith Laube (L)
18. Kevin Hall (May 13, 2013). "Branstad Names Mary Mosiman New State Auditor". The Iowa Republican. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
19. Christinia Crippes (February 25, 2014). "Neiderbach vying for state Auditor". WCF Courier. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
20. "AG SECRETARY: Northey Seeking Re-Election". whotv.com. March 11, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
21. O. Kay Henderson (August 27, 2013). "Des Moines Democrat running for state ag secretary". Radio Iowa. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
22. Levi Benning (NIP)
23. Ed O’Keefe (January 26, 2013). "Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) won't seek reelection". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
24. Blake, Aaron (February 7, 2013). "Iowa Rep. Bruce Braley to run for Senate". The Fix. Retrieved February 7, 2013.
25. Jacobs, Jennifer (June 10, 2013). "Sioux City radio host Sam Clovis joins U.S. Senate race". Des Moines Register. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
26. Jacobs, Jennifer (July 10, 2013). "Republican Joni Ernst joins U.S. Senate race". Archived from the original on July 11, 2013. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
27. Emily Cahn (November 13, 2013). "Iowa's GOP Senate Field Grows Again". Retrieved November 13, 2013.
28. Burns, Douglas (July 5, 2013). "Kuemper alum Schaben plans U.S. Senate bid". Daily Times Herald. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
29. Trygstad, Kyle (May 7, 2013). "GOP Senate Candidate Announces in Iowa". Roll Call. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
30. "Iowa secretary of State : Paul D. Pate : November 4, 2014 General Election". Electionresults.sos.iowa.gov. Archived from the original on December 13, 2014. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
31. Deeth, John (March 17, 2014). "Filing By The Numbers". John Deeth Blog. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
32. Iowa Secretary of State's Office (March 26, 2014). "Final Candidate Listing By Office, June 3, 2014 Primary Election" (pdf). Retrieved April 3, 2014.
33. The Office of the Iowa Secretary of State. "Candidate's Guide to the General Election, November 4, 2014" (pdf). pp. 1–2. Retrieved April 3, 2014.