Special election is Tuesday for Clinton state Senate seat

In Tuesday's special eleciton, there are two candidates on the ballot: Democrat Mike Zimmer and Republican Kate Whittington.

By Zachary Oren Smith

January 27, 2025

Tuesday’s special election will decide who fills the vacancy left by Lieutenant Gov. Chris Cournoyer.

The special election for the vacant state Senate seat in District 35 will be held on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. Polling places will be open on Election Day from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Two candidates are on the ballot: Mike Zimmer, a Democrat from DeWitt; and Kate Whittington, a Republican from Clinton.

Mike Zimmer, 64, is the president of the Central DeWitt School Board and owner of Mike Zimmer Construction. He told Iowa Starting Line his reason for running came from being on the school board and watching unfunded mandates from the Iowa Legislature and chronic underfunding for public schools hurt his district.

“I’d call it a death by a thousand cuts,” Zimmer said. “I feel like the legislation that’s been passed over the last seven years involving public education has been ill-informed and not rolled out or researched very well. And when it does pass, we on the end of implementing it are left with figuring out well, what did you mean? Did you really think that through?”

Republican Kate Whittington never responded to an opportunity for an interview. A mailer sent out by her campaign said she supports private school vouchers and opposes wind energy projects. While she initially had an event scheduled with former Iowa Congressman Steve King, she deleted posts related to the visit from her website. Since then, she has been endorsed by both Gov. Kim Reynolds and Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer.

Zachary Oren Smith

Zachary Oren Smith is your friendly neighborhood reporter. He leads Starting Line’s political coverage where he investigates corruption, housing affordability and the future of work. For nearly a decade, he’s written award-winning stories for Iowa Public Radio, The Des Moines Register and Iowa City Press-Citizen. Send your tips on hard news and good food to [email protected].

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