Latest news with #LynnEvans
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Republican state Sen. Lynn Evans drops bid for Iowa's 4th Congressional District
Republican State Sen. Lynn Evans has dropped out of the race for Iowa's 4th Congressional District. Evans, of Aurelia, launched an exploratory committee on May 17 as he considered a congressional bid. He announced Wednesday, July 9, that he would instead seek reelection to the Iowa Senate in 2026. "After visiting with hundreds of Iowans over the past six weeks, and much self-reflection, my passion remains with our work in the Iowa Senate and at the Capitol in Des Moines," Evans said in a news release. "I remain grateful for this opportunity given to me by my constituents. I intend to earn their continued support between now and next November." Evans' announcement comes the same week that Iowa House Majority Leader Matt Windschitl, R-Missouri Valley, announced he would seek the Republican nomination in the 4th District. Siouxland Chamber of Commerce President Chris McGowan announced his campaign in late June. Iowa's 4th Congressional District is the most conservative of Iowa's four congressional districts, spanning 36 counties in northwestern Iowa and along the full western edge of the state. The seat is expected to be open in 2026 after incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra filed paperwork May 12 to form an exploratory committee to run for governor. Evans was elected to the Iowa Senate in 2022, representing Senate District 3, which includes Buena Vista, Osceola and O'Brien counties and portions of Cherokee and Clay counties. He chairs the Senate Education Committee. Evans touted the work he has done in the Iowa Senate on education issues, restricting abortion, cutting taxes, passing "fiscally responsible budgets" and limiting eminent domain use. "This work will continue over the next few years, and I remain as committed to this work as I have been since entering the Iowa Senate in 2022," he said. Democrat Ryan Melton, who ran against Feenstra in 2022 and 2026, had announced he would run again in 2026. But he suspended his campaign in June, citing changes to his health and employment status. Democrat Ashley WolfTornabane announced her campaign on July 4. Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@ or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on X at @sgrubermiller. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: GOP Sen. Lynn Evans won't run for Iowa's 4th Congressional District
Yahoo
18-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ryan Melton suspends campaign for Iowa 4th Congressional District
Ryan Melton announced Tuesday he is suspending his campaign for the 4th Congressional District seat in Iowa. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch) Ryan Melton, a Democratic candidate for Iowa's 4th Congressional District who ran in 2022 and 2024, has suspended his campaign due to personal matters, including his job and family. Melton announced the suspension on social media Tuesday, saying it was one of the 'toughest decisions' he's ever made. 'It was an honor to fight the good fight on your behalf, and I will continue to, just in different ways,' Melton said in his post. 'It's the biggest sacrifice I've ever made for the greater good, but I don't regret a single minute, and am proud of the fact that the party out here in the 4th is in a much better place now than it was when I first began running.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Reasons he gave for stepping out of the race included recently losing his job at Nationwide Insurance due to company reorganization and the need to find a new job to support his family, as well as dealing with a health concern. He added he wants to stay home for his wife and 6-year-old son. Incumbent U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra, who won elections against Melton for the district in 2022 and 2024, has launched an exploratory committee for a possible gubernatorial run in Iowa. Sen. Lynn Evans, R-Aurelia, has made a similar move for the 4th Congressional District. The district spans much of northwest Iowa and includes Ames, Council Bluffs and Sioux City. Between his two campaigns, Melton said in his post his vote shares across the district's 36 counties either stayed steady or grew, a fact he is proud of achieving as someone with a full-time job, family and no funding from political action committees representing corporate interests. Melton said in his post he's been happy to hear from first-time political candidates from across the state who have reached out, and said he'll be rooting for them. He also encouraged everyday people to run for office, even if they don't know how everything works or don't have the funds or industry support to get their name out there right away. 'We need more working people that struggle every day along with most Americans to run for every office, and I'll always make time for you if you want to call me to inquire,' Melton said in his post. 'Also, even if you are in a district that may seem unwinnable on Election Day, run anyway, because if you tell the truth and run as a sacrifice for the greater good, you'll find so many wins out there.' Travis Terrell, a Democrat running in Iowa's 1st Congressional District, said in a social media post Melton was one of the first people he called — and one of the few who responded — when launching his campaign. Melton made 'an extremely powerful point' in his announcement that more working people need to get out and run for office. 'We need working class voices to fight, let's be honest, the rich and powerful are not going to save us when they're the one's holding us down,' Terrell said in his post. 'It takes real people to power real change. Thank you Ryan.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
State Sen. Lynn Evans launches exploratory committee as he considers run for Congress
Iowa Sen. Lynn Evans, R-Aurelia, has launched an exploratory committee as he considers a run for Congress in Iowa's 4th District. Evans, who is the chair of the Senate Education Committee, announced in a news release Saturday, May 17, he's considering a campaign for the state's most conservative district. Evans is serving his first term in the Iowa Senate representing District 3, which includes Buena Vista, Osceola, and O'Brien and portions of Cherokee and Clay counties. 'After prayerful consideration and thoughtful conversations with family and constituents, I'm launching this exploratory committee to assess a run for Congress,' Evans said in a statement. 'Iowans deserve true conservative representation—someone who understands rural values, works hard, and puts people ahead of politics.' The seat is currently held by Republican U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra, who has filed paperwork and formed an exploratory committee to run for Iowa governor in 2026. Feenstra is in his third term representing Iowa's 4th Congressional District. Evans, who works as adjunct professor at Buena Vista University, asserted that one of the reasons he is considering a run for Congress is because Washington is 'out of touch' with Iowans. 'I'm exploring this race because I believe in common-sense, conservative solutions—and I know how to bring people together to get things done,' Evans said in the statement. Democrat Ryan Melton also has announced his campaign for the seat. José Mendiola is a breaking news reporter for the Register. Reach him at jmendiola@ or follow him on X @mendiola_news. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa Sen. Lynn Evans explores run for 4th Congressional District
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iowa lawmakers change ‘bullying' definition for schools
DES MOINES, Iowa — What Iowa Republicans are calling a 'cleanup' to Iowa code is now eligible to be signed into law. 'Every child, not just because they match up some certain traits that we decided, the laundry list a number of years ago in Iowa code,' said State Senator Lynn Evans (R), District 3 from Aurelia. 'The bill before us cleans up Iowa code and makes it very clear.' The bill changes Iowa code 280.28 subsection 2 to define 'bullying' and 'harassment' to 'shall be construed to mean any repeated and targeted electronic, written, verbal, or physical act or conduct toward a student that creates an objectively hostile school environment.' It removes the language 'which is based on any actual or perceived trait or characteristic of the student'. The bill also strikes out the 17 traits in the 'perceived trait or characteristic definition'. That definition reads 'includes but is not limited to age, color, creed, national origin, race, religion, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical attributes, physical or mental ability or disability, ancestry, political party reference, political belief, socioeconomic status, or familial status.' Iowa bill requiring districts share immunization exemption information with families sent to governor Senate Republicans argued that by removing the traits listed in Iowa code, the definition of bullying is expanded. Several senators on the floor said that school districts have asked for that change. Senate Democrats warned of the opposite, that by removing these traits it will make it more difficult for reporting bullying against a targeted group. 'It helps students, it helps schools, it helps families be able to identify what counts as bullying, but it also helps us to track what kind of bullying is happening in our schools,' said State Senator Sarah Trone Garriot (D), District 14, from Waukee. 'I think the real intent might be to make it harder for folks on this list to get the support they need.' Trone Garriot also pointed out that the current definition in Iowa code says that those traits on the list are not limited to that list, when Senate Republicans said this makes it easier to report bullying. The bill is now sent off to Governor Reynolds to be signed into law. Iowa News: Iowa lawmakers change 'bullying' definition for schools Iowa bill requiring districts share immunization exemption information with families sent to governor Forecast: Rain chances round out the week; beautiful weekend The countdown is on: 100 days until the 2025 Iowa State Fair; see what's new Iowans share stories to help others on National Fentanyl Awareness Day Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Iowa House sends school funding bill to Gov. Kim Reynolds
Iowa K-12 schools will receive a 2% per-pupil increase in state aid as part of a funding package approved Tuesday. (Photo by) The Iowa House on Tuesday passed the state K-12 school funding package for the 2025-2026 school year and sent it to the governor's desk. Senate File 167, passed 59-36, sets the State Supplemental Aid (SSA) rate at 2%, increasing the per-pupil funding for K-12 students by $157 from the current year. The amended bill also includes a proposed $5 bump to the State Cost Per Pupil (SCPP) to address disparities in some school districts with the District Cost Per Pupil (DCPP), and a 5% increase to the rate of funding per pupil to the transportation equity fund. Sen. Lynn Evans, R-Aurelia, said during Senate debate Monday that the bill will provide 'responsible and sustainable funding' for Iowa schools, with the package providing $238.1 million in increased funding for Iowa's K-12 education system from the previous year — when including funding for public K-12 schools, charter schools and the state's Education Savings Account program — as a part of a total $4.2 billion in K-12 education spending. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The House approval comes after lengthy negotiations between the Republicans in the two chambers over education spending. Senate Republicans initially proposed a 2% SSA rate with no additional funding components, in line with Gov. Kim Reynolds' recommendation at the beginning of the 2025 legislative session. But House Republicans proposed a slightly higher 2.25% SSA rate, alongside other funding components — some of which made it into the final bill with some changes. The House GOP proposal included a $10 SCPP raise and an unlimited appropriation for transportation equity aid payment to address existing inequities, components that were altered but included in the Senate amendment. Other funding aspects, like a $22.6 million one-time appropriation to supplement school funding in fiscal year 2026, were not included. House Democrats criticized Republicans, who control both chambers, for not reaching an agreement on school funding earlier. Lawmakers have a self-imposed deadline to pass school funding for the next year within 30 days of the governor's budget being released. That deadline passed in February — and school districts' deadlines to release a budget proposal for the upcoming year passed in March. Rep. Larry McBurney, D-Urbandale, said the 2% SSA rate will not provide adequate funding to Iowa schools, and will lead to property tax increases in many Iowa communities. Under the proposal, Democrats said 159 Iowa school districts will be on the budget guarantee, a process increasing property taxes that is triggered when school districts' funding obligations cannot be met by SSA. McBurney said House Republicans 'ultimately caved' to the Senate's lower school funding proposal, and called for his GOP colleagues in the House to not support the amended bill. 'If we're going to do it, let's do it right,' McBurney said. 'Heck, you guys have already missed the timeline by two months. What's another few weeks to get it right for our public schools?' Rep. Dan Gehlbach, R-Urbandale, the bill's floor manager, pushed back against Democrats' criticisms, saying 'House Republicans didn't just accept the first offer on the table, we fought for more.' 'This plan isn't everything we initially voted on, but it's a hard-fought victory that moves us forward, and I'm proud of the work our leadership did to get this across the finish line,' Gehlbach said. Gehlbach also said there will be more school funding discussions in the future, saying he hopes to run a measure in 2025 that would provide a $14 million standing appropriation for paying paraeducators in Iowa's K-12 school system. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
