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 zach@iowastartingline.com.
Zachary Oren Smith
Latest from Zachary Oren Smith
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Iowa competes with Florida for most book bans
Rightwing activists are going after books across the country. And in Iowa, the number of bans is near the top of the country. An analysis of book bans in the US over the last three years found 10,000 books were banned. And nearly 36% were in Iowa. From Adel DeSoto Minburn to Woodward-Granger Community School…
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Three key takeaways from the Miller-Meeks-Bohannan results
As we take stock of what happened in 2024 and prepare for the road ahead, the results in the 1st Congressional District show some interesting trends. Here are some key takeaways from Tuesday’s election. In Iowa’s southeastern congressional district, not only do we not have an official call from the Associated Press late into the…
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Republicans maintain control in Iowa, see small gains on historic majorities
Despite some Democratic wins, Republicans carried the night. They maintain control of the Iowa Legislature and congressional seats. Going into Tuesday, Iowa Democrats had a lot to be excited about. A list of winnable seats in Des Moines. Two seats in Congress labeled “toss-ups.” And an Iowa Poll that suggested big wins for Democrats. But…
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How does my vote get counted—and certified—in Iowa?
Now that you’ve voted, how does your vote get counted? We drew a roadmap Iowa takes after each Election Day to certify its results. You voted. You did your job. With a little patience we’ll have a result. Because there is so much attention on getting you to a precinct to fill out and turn…
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Judge declines to intervene in Iowa voter challenge case, but local officials can use their judgment
The Iowa Secretary of State’s order to poll workers remains in effect after a judge declined to intervene. The judge said Pate has walked back the parameters of his original order that the court took issue with. Registered voters on the list—including naturalized citizens—will need to prove their citizenship to have their ballot counted. Over…
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Iowa poll showing Harris in lead shocks country, could point to late Democratic momentum
The country is reeling after the new Iowa Poll had Harris 3 percentage points ahead of Trump in Iowa. Just days before the 2024 election, the Hawkeye State is on the map. Saturday afternoon, Iowa GOP Chair Jeff Kaufmann was excited. The new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll was coming out and he was ready…
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Miller-Meeks condemns Super PACs, her primary source of campaign money
Republican US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks says the use of dark super PAC money in politics is “kind of like Hezbollah and Hamas being proxies for Iran.” Miller-Meeks has a PAC. Since 2010’s Citizens United v. FEC, it is estimated that more than $2.8 billion has flowed into US elections. An OpenSecrets analysis found shell companies…
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Judge to rule on SOS’ challenge list of 2,022 registered voters by Sunday
Naturalized citizens are asking a federal judge to rescind an order from the Iowa Secretary of State requiring them to jump through more hoops to have their vote counted. The judge could have a ruling by Sunday. Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, is telling poll workers to require a list of 2,022…
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Iowa’s use of flawed data in voter challenges results in confusion, lawsuit
Despite known issues with driver’s license records, the Iowa Secretary of State’s voter challenges targeted 2,022 registered voters—including naturalized citizens who can legally vote. Ruth Toomer will be the first to admit that WHO 13 News is on a little loud in the morning. Last week, the family was getting ready for work: her husband…
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Iowa counties may have illegally processed ‘mass voter challenges’
A vendor says some Iowa counties are processing systematic voter challenges shortly before an election, an action that would violate state and federal law. The ACLU is raising the alarm. And records show, the Iowa Secretary of State is “strongly suggesting” those counties reverse course. The national ACLU and the ACLU of Iowa say counties…
