Iowa news profiles candidates on ballot
Bremer County races heat up, says auditor
By Janelle Penny
Waverly Democrat (Iowa) (link)
Several hotly contested races in Bremer County give the Nov. 4 election a shot of energy.
Bremer County Deputy Auditor Nancy Higgins said her office may add one or two extra poll workers to each precinct to ease the anticipated long lines.
"[We will] try to make the voting smooth," Higgins added.
Six-term supervisor Steven Reuter, a Republican, will face off against Democrat Roger Brettmann and independent Steven Heideman to represent the county's third district on the Board of Supervisors. Reuter has not faced a challenger since 1988, the year he won his first full term.
District 1 Supervisor Ken Kammeyer, Auditor Lynn Brase and Sheriff Dewey Hildebrandt will not face opponents in November.
Both of Bremer County's incumbent state representatives will fight for a second term in the Legislature. Republican Rep. Pat Grassley, whose district includes Butler County and the western half of Bremer County, will face off against Democrat Cayla Baresel, a Wartburg graduate and Maquoketa native.
Denver businessman Austin Lorenzen, a Republican, is challenging Rep. Andrew Wenthe, a Democrat whose district includes the eastern half of Bremer County and the western half of Fayette County. Grassley and Wenthe were both elected in 2006.
U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, a Democrat elected in 2006, will face off against David Hartsuch of Bettendorf, a Republican, who was elected to the Iowa Senate last year. Businessman and Solon native Christopher Reed will vie for the Senate seat held by incumbent Sen. Tom Harkin since 1984.
Nine candidates for president will appear at the top of the ballot, with Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Democratic Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois waging a close race.
Other challengers running for the nation's highest office include Chuck Baldwin, Constitution Party; Cynthia McKinney, Green Party; Bob Barr, Libertarian; Gloria La Riva, Party for Socialism and Liberation; Ralph Nader, Peace and Freedom; Brian Moore, Socialist Party USA; and James Harris, Socialist Workers Party.
Voters in Bremer County's 14 townships will also pick two trustees each to govern rural areas and settle property disputes. Only the race in Maxfield, near Denver, is contested, with Eugene Matthias, Lavern Brase, Douglas Eick and Ronald J. Oltrogge vying for a pair of seats.
Residents of Bremer and Butler counties will also decide whether to retain eight judges. State Supreme Court Justices Daryl Hecht, Brent Appel and Mark Cady face a retention election this year, as do Court of Appeals judges Rosemary Shaw Sackett, Larry Eisenhauer and Terry Huitink and District 2A Court Judges Christopher Foy and Colleen Weiland.
By Janelle Penny
Waverly Democrat (Iowa) (link)
Several hotly contested races in Bremer County give the Nov. 4 election a shot of energy.
Bremer County Deputy Auditor Nancy Higgins said her office may add one or two extra poll workers to each precinct to ease the anticipated long lines.
"[We will] try to make the voting smooth," Higgins added.
Six-term supervisor Steven Reuter, a Republican, will face off against Democrat Roger Brettmann and independent Steven Heideman to represent the county's third district on the Board of Supervisors. Reuter has not faced a challenger since 1988, the year he won his first full term.
District 1 Supervisor Ken Kammeyer, Auditor Lynn Brase and Sheriff Dewey Hildebrandt will not face opponents in November.
Both of Bremer County's incumbent state representatives will fight for a second term in the Legislature. Republican Rep. Pat Grassley, whose district includes Butler County and the western half of Bremer County, will face off against Democrat Cayla Baresel, a Wartburg graduate and Maquoketa native.
Denver businessman Austin Lorenzen, a Republican, is challenging Rep. Andrew Wenthe, a Democrat whose district includes the eastern half of Bremer County and the western half of Fayette County. Grassley and Wenthe were both elected in 2006.
U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, a Democrat elected in 2006, will face off against David Hartsuch of Bettendorf, a Republican, who was elected to the Iowa Senate last year. Businessman and Solon native Christopher Reed will vie for the Senate seat held by incumbent Sen. Tom Harkin since 1984.
Nine candidates for president will appear at the top of the ballot, with Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Democratic Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois waging a close race.
Other challengers running for the nation's highest office include Chuck Baldwin, Constitution Party; Cynthia McKinney, Green Party; Bob Barr, Libertarian; Gloria La Riva, Party for Socialism and Liberation; Ralph Nader, Peace and Freedom; Brian Moore, Socialist Party USA; and James Harris, Socialist Workers Party.
Voters in Bremer County's 14 townships will also pick two trustees each to govern rural areas and settle property disputes. Only the race in Maxfield, near Denver, is contested, with Eugene Matthias, Lavern Brase, Douglas Eick and Ronald J. Oltrogge vying for a pair of seats.
Residents of Bremer and Butler counties will also decide whether to retain eight judges. State Supreme Court Justices Daryl Hecht, Brent Appel and Mark Cady face a retention election this year, as do Court of Appeals judges Rosemary Shaw Sackett, Larry Eisenhauer and Terry Huitink and District 2A Court Judges Christopher Foy and Colleen Weiland.
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