Iowa's 2nd Congressional District elections, 2014
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November 4, 2014 |
June 3, 2014 |
Dave Loebsack  |
Dave Loebsack |
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Cook Political Report: Likely D[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Likely D[2]
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The 2nd Congressional District of Iowa held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014.
Incumbent Dave Loebsack (D), who was first elected in 2006, defeated challenger Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R) in the general election. He faced no opposition in the Democratic primary. Cook Political Report designated the district as "Likely Democrat" due to Loebsack's tenure.
Up until the election, local news reported that the race was more competitive than previously thought. Polls in September showed Loebsack with a comfortable lead over Miller-Meeks.[4] Miller-Meeks was able to garner support throughout early October with outside groups that funded advertisements in her favor. The National Republican Congressional Committee stated that they spent $900,000 in the district from October 21, 2014 until the day of the election. Likewise, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee devoted $420,000 for the district to support Loebsack up until the election.[5]
Former Iowa Department of Public Health director Mariannette Miller-Meeks beat out State Representative Mark Lofgren and Matthew Waldren for the nomination in the Republican primary. There were no third party candidates set to challenge Loebsack for his seat. Financially, Loebsack maintained the most cash-on-hand for his campaign with around $700,000 according to the Federal Election Commission.
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
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Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. In Iowa, state law provides for a closed primary where every voter must be affiliated with a party in order to participate in its primary. However, a voter can change his or her political party affiliation on Election Day, creating what is effectively an open primary.[6]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Voter registration: To vote in the primary voters were required to register by either May 26, 2014, to pre-register, or on election day. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 25, 2014 (10 days before election day).[7]
- See also: Iowa elections, 2014
Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Dave Loebsack (D), who was first elected in 2006.
Iowa's 2nd Congressional District covers most of the southeastern part of the state including Iowa City. Appanoose, Cedar, Clarke, Clinton, Davis, Decatur, Des Moines, Henry, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Keokuk, Lee, Louisa, Lucas, Mahaska, Marion, Monroe, Muscatine, Scott, Van Buren, Wapello, Washington, and Wayne counties are included in this district.[8]
Candidates
General election candidates
Mariannette Miller-Meeks- Dave Loebsack - Incumbent
June 3, 2014, primary results
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Elections
General election results
The 2nd Congressional District of Iowa held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Dave Loebsack (D) defeated Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dave Loebsack Incumbent |
52.5% | 143,431 | |
| Republican | Mariannette Miller-Meeks | 47.4% | 129,455 | |
| Write-in | Other | 0.2% | 443 | |
| Total Votes | 273,329 | |||
| Source: Iowa Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
Primary results
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mariannette Miller-Meeks |
49.4% | 15,043 | ||
| Mark Lofgren | 38.2% | 11,634 | ||
| Matthew Waldren | 12.3% | 3,746 | ||
| Total Votes | 30,423 | |||
| Source: Iowa Secretary of State |
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Polls
General election
| General election match-up | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Dave Loebsack (D) | Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R) | Undecided | Margin of Error | Sample Size | ||||||||||||||
| Loras College (September 2-5, 2014) | 48.7% | 32.1% | 19.4% | +/-5.6 | 300 | ||||||||||||||
| The Tarrance Group August 3-5, 2014 | 45% | 42% | 13% | +/-4.9 | 400 | ||||||||||||||
| Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org | |||||||||||||||||||
Republican primary
| Republican primary | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Mariannette Miller-Meeks | Mark Lofgren | Matthew Waldren | Undecided | Margin of Error | Sample Size | |||||||||||||
| Loras College April 8-10, 2014 | 17% | 11% | 1% | 68% | +/-5.65 | 300 | |||||||||||||
| Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org | |||||||||||||||||||
Key votes
Below are important votes the incumbent cast during the 113th Congress.
Government shutdown
- See also: United States budget debate, 2013
On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201.[12] At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference.[13] Dave Loebsack voted against the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.[14]
The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.[15] The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Dave Loebsack voted for HR 2775.[16]
Campaign contributions
Dave Loebsack
| Dave Loebsack (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[17] | April 15, 2013 | $21,887.02 | $106,111.89 | $(27,288.12) | $100,710.79 | ||||
| July Quarterly[18] | July 15, 2013 | $95,660.51 | $147,430.97 | $(27,443.10) | $215,648.38 | ||||
| October Quarterly[19] | October 13, 2013 | $215,648.38 | $151,156.64 | $(34,794.98) | $332,010.04 | ||||
| Year-end[20] | January 31, 2014 | $332,010 | $144,582 | $(51,476) | $425,115 | ||||
| April Quarterly[21] | April 15, 2014 | $425,115 | $204,250 | $(58,105) | $571,261 | ||||
| July Quarterly | July 15, 2014 | $617,188 | $153,150 | $(60,917) | $709,421 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $906,681.5 | $(260,024.2) | ||||||||
Mariannette Miller-Meeks
| Mariannette Miller-Meeks (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[22] | April 15, 2014 | $0 | $128,806 | $(4,830) | $124,326 | ||||
| July Quarterly[23] | July 15, 2014 | $160,414 | $166,136 | $(53,072) | $273,478 | ||||
| October Quarterly[24] | October 15, 2014 | $273,478 | $367,528 | $(498,917) | $142,088 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $662,470 | $(556,819) | ||||||||
Mark Lofgren
| Mark Lofgren (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[25] | April 30, 2013 | $575,964.25 | $45,240.47 | $(49,543.88) | $571,660.84 | ||||
| July Quarterly[26] | July 11, 2013 | $571,660.84 | $149,546.50 | $(62,821.34) | $658,386.00 | ||||
| October Quarterly[27] | October 16, 2013 | $658,386.00 | $228,648.22 | $(91,484.59) | $795,549.63 | ||||
| Year End[28] | January 31, 2014 | $24,912 | $34,003 | $(26,546) | $32,368 | ||||
| April Quarterly[29] | April 15, 2014 | $32,428 | $18,340 | $(36,737) | $14,031 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $475,778.19 | $(267,132.81) | ||||||||
District history
| Candidate ballot access |
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2012
On November 6, 2012, Dave Loebsack (D) won re-election to the United States House. He defeated John Archer in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dave Loebsack Incumbent |
55.6% | 211,863 | |
| Republican | John Archer | 42.5% | 161,977 | |
| Independent | Alan Aversa | 1.9% | 7,112 | |
| Total Votes | 380,952 | |||
| Source: Iowa Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
2010
On November 2, 2010, Dave Loebsack won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R), Gary Sicard (L) and Jon Tack (C) in the general election.[30]
| U.S. House, Iowa District 2 General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Dave Loebsack incumbent |
51% | 115,839 | |
| Republican | Mariannette Miller-Meeks | 45.9% | 104,319 | |
| Libertarian | Gary Sicard | 1.9% | 4,356 | |
| Constitution | Jon Tack | 1.1% | 2,463 | |
| N/A | Write-In | 0.1% | 198 | |
| Total Votes | 227,175 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Iowa, 2014
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2014
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS FOR June 26, 2014," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Races," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Fairvote, "FairVote Releases Projections for the 2014 Congressional Elections," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Real Clear Politics, "Iowa 2nd District - Miller-Meeks vs. Loebsack," accessed October 21, 2014
- ↑ Quad-City Times, "Democrats come to aid of Loebsack, Murphy," October 21, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State Website, "Voter Registration FAQ," accessed July 21, 2025
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State Website, "Voter Pre-Registration," accessed January 3, 2014
- ↑ United States Census Bureau, "Counties by Congressional Districts," accessed June 8, 2016
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 QC Times "Lofgren announces 2nd Congressional District bid" accessed June 26, 2013
- ↑ Des Moines Register "Miller-Meeks might try again to unseat Loebsack" accessed June 26, 2013
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State Elections, "Candidate List," accessed March 15, 2014
- ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
- ↑ Buzzfeed, "Government Shutdown: How We Got Here," accessed October 1, 2013
- ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Reid, McConnell propose bipartisan Senate bill to end shutdown, extend borrowing," accessed October 16, 2013
- ↑ U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 550," accessed October 31, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly" accessed July 25, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "July Quarterly" accessed July 25, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed October 24, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End Report," accessed February 17, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed April 21, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "July Quarterly," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed November 6, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "July Quarterly" accessed July 30, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," November 6, 2013
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End Report," accessed March 3, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
