School and City Elections in Iowa Held on the Same Day This Year

DES MOINES, Iowa – City and school elections will be conducted simultaneously this year, on Tuesday November 5. A law passed by the Iowa Legislature in 2017 ended the longstanding tradition of holding school board elections in September. 

Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says hopes the combined elections will increase voter participation.

“Turnout for city and school elections is usually not very high and I hope that changes this year,” Pate said. “A lot of voters might not realize that these local elections tend to have a much greater impact on their daily lives than the races for president and the U.S. Senate.” 

The filing period for candidates in city and school general elections begins Monday, August 26 and runs through Thursday, September 19.

Some cities also conduct primary elections for city council positions. That filing period runs through August 29. Primary elections will take place on October 8.

Candidate’s Guides, which include deadlines and information about collecting petition signatures to qualify for the ballot, are available at the Iowa Secretary of State’s website, sos.iowa.gov, in the Elections section.