Southeast Iowa voters largely favored Finkenhauer over Franken; Rinker to face Cohoon in November ballot
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Burlington City councilman Matt Rinker pulled out a win on Tuesday in his bid to move on to state politics as the Republican candidate for Iowa Representative District 99.
Rinker, who faced off against GGood Restaurant and Lounge owner TJ Widbin, came out with 55% of the vote in Des Moines County.
During the campaign, Rinker focused heavily on his experience in local politics. Rinker has served on the Burlington City Council for the past five years, and in that time he’s made numerous trips to Des Moines on city business.
“I am incredibly honored to be the party’s nominee, and I’m grateful for every person who cast a vote in today’s primary and I’m looking forward to working toward the November election,” Rinker said of his win. “Every election is an uphill battle. It's the longest job interview that anyone can ever go through.
"That being said, I am confident that I am prepared to serve as our district’s legislator. I'm looking forward to covering issues like education funding, mental health programs and our state infrastructure with my opponent.”
Throughout Widbin's campaign, the newcomer spoke of both his outsider status and his status as a restaurant owner. Widbin said he always considered politics, but the time hadn't been right up until his decision to run this year.
Before Rinker can take a Senate seat, he must face off against Democrat Dennis Cohoon, the longest serving state representative in Iowa. Cohoon has held his seat since the 1980s and has not faced a challenger in the last two election cycles. He also did not have a Democrat opponent.
There were no other contested local races on the primary ballot. Des Moines County Supervisor Tom Broker, Des Moines County Attorney Lisa Schaefer, Janelle Nalley-Lonquist, and county recorder Natalie Steffner are unopposed.
More: TJ Widbin, candidate for Iowa House seat, says his life experience will help him in Des Moines
Des Moines County's state senate seat did not appear on the ballot in this election. State senate seats are only elected every four years, and while the new district maps would have placed senators Tim Goodwin and Jeff Reichman in the same category, Goodwin resigned, allowing Reichman to continue his term without a challenger.
Southeast Iowa Democrats break from state majority in U.S. Senate choice
Abby Finkenauer was the clear favorite among southeast Iowa Democrats.
The former U.S. representative came out ahead of retired Navy admiral Michael Franken in Des Moines, Lee and Louisa counties, but that trend didn't hold throughout the rest of the state.
Franken pulled out victories in the middle of the state with large victories in Polk, Black Hawk and Johnson counties.
The Associated Press declared Franken the winner at 9:13 p.m. Tuesday. With an estimated 99% of votes cast tallied on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported Franken had earned about 55% of the vote over Finkenauer's 40% in unofficial results. Glenn Hurst, a physician and city councilor, earned about 5%.
More: Former Navy admiral Michael Franken discussed Russia, China and Medicare in Burlington
Franken will go on to challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley in November.
Here's how other names on the ballot faired in southeast Iowa counties:
U.S. SENATE
Iowa
Republican
Chuck Grassley: 143,289
Jim Carlin: 51,755
Democrat
Michael Franken: 86,372
Abby Finkenauer: 62,498
Glenn Hurst: 7,562
Write-ins: 157
Des Moines County
Republican
Chuck Grassley: 1,246
Jim Carlin: 524
Write-ins: 3
Democrat
Abby Finkenauer: 743
Michael Franken: 625
Glenn Hurst: 62
Write-ins: 1
Henry County
Republican
Chuck Grassley: 1,135
Jim Carlin: 420
Write-ins: 2
Democrat
Abby Finkenauer: 244
Michael Franken: 308
Glenn Hurst: 19
Write-in: 0
Lee County
Republican
Chuck Grassley: 827
Jim Carlin: 323
Write-ins: 1
Democrat
Abby Finkenauer: 597
Michael Franken: 424
Glenn Hurst: 44
Write-in: 1
Louisa County
Republican
Chuck Grassley: 481
Jim Carlin 222
Democrat
Abby Finkenauer: 103
Michael Franken: 85
Glenn Hurst 17
Secretary of State
Iowa
Republican
Paul Pate: 174,090
Write-in: 566
Democrat
Joel Miller: 97,883
Eric Van Lancker: 38,598
Des Moines County
Republican
Paul Pate: 1,559
Write-in: 6
Democrat
Joel Miller: 929
Eric Van Lancker: 366
Write-in: 3
Henry County
Republican
Paul Pate:1,437
Write-in:5
Democrat
Joel Miller: 391
Eric Van Lancker:122
Write-in: 0
Lee County
Republican
Paul Pate: 1,073
Write-in: 4
Democrat
Joel Miller: 653
Eric Van Lancker: 351
Write-in: 1
Louisa County
Republican
Paul Pate: 617
Write-in
Democrat
Joel Miller: 143
Eric Van Lancker: 49
Write-in: 1
State Auditor
Iowa
Republican
Todd Halbur: 83,776
Mary Ann Hanusa: 79,847
Democrat
Rob Sand: 144,933
Write-in: 314
Des Moines County
Republican
Todd Halbur: 637
Mary Ann Hanusa: 812
Write-in: 8
Democrat
Rob Sand: 1,337
Write-in: 4
Henry County
Republican
Todd Halbur: 646
Mary Ann Hanusa: 669
Write-in: 2
Democrat
Rob Sand:539
Write-in: 0
Lee County
Republican
Todd Halbur: 468
Mary Ann Hanusa: 569
Write-in: 3
Democrat
Rob Sand: 1,028
Write-in: 1
Louisa County
Republican
Todd Halbur: 307 51.51%
Mary Ann Hanusa: 289 48.49%
Democrat
Rob Sand: 189
Write-in: 1
State Representative District 87
District 87
Republican
Joe Mitchell: 1,319
Jeff Shipley: 1,605
Write-in: 5
Democrat
Mike Heaton: 1,587
Write-in:5
Henry County
Republican
Joe Mitchell: 697
Jeff Shipley: 243
Write-in:1
Democrat
Mike Heaton: 318
Write-in: 2
Jefferson County
Republican
Joe Mitchell: 309
Jeff Shipley: 712
Write-in: 3
Democrat
Mike Heaton: 1,057
Write-in: 2
Van Buren County
Republican
Joe Mitchell: 313
Jeff Shipley: 650
Write-in: 1
Democrat
Mike Heaton: 1,057
Write-in: 2
State Representative District 99
District 99
Republican
Matt Rinker: 728
TJ Widbin: 595
Write-in: 2
Democrat
Dennis Cohoon: 1,165
Write-in: 2
Des Moines County
Republican
Matt Rinker: 663
TJ Widbin: 561
Write-in:2
Democrat
Dennis Cohoon: 1,121
Write-in: 5
Lee County
Republican
Matt Rinker: 65
TJ Widbin: 34
Write-in:0
Democrat
Dennis Cohoon: 44
Louisa County Offices
Supervisor
Republican
Tim Coleman: 301 44%
Shawn Maine: 381 55.7%
Write-in: 2
Democrat
Randy Shulz: 178
Write-in: 1
This article originally appeared on The Hawk Eye: Abby Finkenhauer favored over Mike Franken by Southeast Iowa Democrats
