Naig Wins Iowa GOP Primary for Ag Secretary, May Not Avoid Convention

A small number of contested primaries – 19 kept Republican turnout low for the 2018 Iowa Primary. The only statewide contested primary was a hotly contested race for the Republican nomination for Iowa Secretary of Agriculture. Democrats, on the other hand, had contested primaries for Governor, Secretary of State, and in the 1st, 3rd, and 4th Congressional Districts.

In the Republican primary for Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Naig is the top vote-getter, but what is in question is whether or not he will have reached the 35 percent threshold required by Iowa law to avoid a special nominating convention. Where the unofficial results stand, he didn’t, but it is really close. We’ll see what the certified count shows. The last time Republicans experienced a special nominating convention this was in 2014 in the Iowa 3rd Congressional District primary where now Congressman David Young (R-Iowa) pulled out a surprise convention win after coming in last in the primary. I’m not sure when the last state-wide special nominating convention has had to be held, if ever.

Naig was appointed by Governor Kim Reynolds after Bill Northey stepped down when he was confirmed to a post with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Northey endorsed Naig in the election. If there is a convention, Naig likely has an advantage, but sometimes these decisions boil down to who is the top second choice of the convention delegates. In the case of the Iowa 3rd Congressional District, that was young. That said, the top vote-getter in the 2014 primary, Brad Zaun, wasn’t as close to the threshold as Naig is.

In the Iowa 4th Congressional District, Congressman Steve King (R-Iowa) also won his primary by a wide margin which was expected.

Here are the unofficial results of the 19 contested primaries.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture

1. Mike Naig – 34.74% (30,616)
2. Dan Zumbach – 21.38% (18,841)
3. Craig Lang – 18.56% (16,355)
4. Ray Gaesser – 16.21% (14,287)
5. Chad Ingles – 8.89% (7,833)

Iowa 4th Congressional District

1. Steve King – 74.69% (27,743)
2. Cyndi Hanson – 25.50% (9,359)

Iowa Senate District 1

1. Zach Whiting – 62.36% (3,536)
2. Brad D. Price – 22.65% (1,284)
3. Jesse Wolfe – 14.87% (843)

Iowa Senate District 19

1. Jack Whitver – 80.68% (1,336)
2. Brett H. Nelson – 19.08% (316)

Iowa Senate District 25

1. Annette Sweeney – 82.77% (2,729)
2. Chad J. Buss – 17.17% (566)

Iowa Senate District 41

1. Mariannette Miller-Meeks – 85.43% (1,706)
2. Daniel Cesar – 13.92% (278)

Iowa House District 5

1. Thomas Jeneary – 71.38% (1,130)
2. Joseph Small – 28.55% (452)

Iowa House District 9

1. Ann Meyer – 67.44% (872)
2. Gary Waechter – 32.33% (418)

Iowa House District 10

1. Mike Sexton – 76.32% (1,354)
2. Tom Hoefling – 23.62% (419)

Iowa House District 15

1. LeAnn L. Hughes – 58.87% (355)
2. Sarah Abdouch – 21.89% (132)
3. Mark L. Hunter – 19.24% (116)

Iowa House District 20

1. Ray Bubba Sorensen – 84.50% (1,363)
2. Dodge Micheal Perrigo – 15.38% (248)

Iowa House District 23

1. David Sieck – 81.98% (1,847)
2. Tony Wernicke – 17.89 (403)

Iowa House District 26

1. Rebel Snodgrass – 57.39% (683)
2. Jeffrey M. Janssen – 42.44% (505)

Iowa House District 28

1. Jon Thorup – 61.24% (1,150)
2. Jon Van Wyk – 38.39% (721)

Iowa House District 44

1. Anna Bergman – 66.79% (708)
2. Travis R. Grassel – 32.92% (349)

Iowa House District 47

1. Phil Thompson – 47.96% (589)
2. Donald J. Batt – 30.94% (380)
3. Victoria Sinclair – 21.09% (259)

Iowa House District 80

1. Holly Brink – 53.71% (934)
2. Richard Harold Keilig, Jr. – 45.49% (791)

Iowa House District 84

1. Joe Mitchell – 38.29% (600)
2. Sheila Matheney – 31.46% (493)
3. Martin Amos – 18.38% (288)
4. Trevor Lynn – 11.61% (182)

Iowa House District 87

1. Tim Goodwin – 81.62% (444)
2. Travis A. Inghram – 17.65% (96)