Iowa State Senate District 45
Iowa State Senate District 45 is represented by Janice Weiner (D).
As of the 2020 Census, Iowa state senators represented an average of 63,848 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 61,076 residents.
About the chamber
Members of the Iowa State Senate serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Half of the senate is up for re-election every two years. Iowa state senators assume office on the first day of January which is not a Sunday or legal holiday.[1][2]
Qualifications
The Iowa Constitution states, "Senators shall be chosen for the term of four years, at the same time and place as representatives; they shall be twenty-five years of age, and possess the qualifications of representatives as to residence and citizenship."[3]
Salaries
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2024[4] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $25,000/year | $178/day for legislators who live outside of Polk County. $133.50/day for legislators who live within Polk County. |
Vacancies
If there is a vacancy in the Iowa General Assembly, the vacant seat must be filled by a special election. The governor of Iowa is required within five days of a vacancy in the General Assembly to call for a special election. If the vacancy happens in session or within 45 days of the session convening, the governor must call for an election as soon as possible with at least an 18-day notice. All other special elections require a 40-day notice as long the election does not happen on the same day as a school election within the district.[5]
See sources: Iowa Code § 69.14
District map
Redistricting
2020 redistricting cycle
On November 4, 2021, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed new congressional and state legislative maps into law after the state's Legislative Services Agency had proposed them on October 21, 2021. The Iowa legislature approved the maps on October 28, 2021, by a vote of 48-1 in the state Senate and 93-2 in the state House.[6] The legislature could only vote to approve or reject the maps and could not make any amendments. These maps took effect for Iowa's 2022 congressional and legislative elections.
How does redistricting in Iowa work? The Legislative Services Agency prepares redistricting plans for approval by the Iowa State Legislature. According to All About Redistricting, the Legislative Services Agency (LSA) consists of "civil servants committed to nonpartisanship and otherwise charged with tasks like legal and fiscal analysis of state legislation and state government oversight." The LSA is assisted by a commission, which consists of the following members:[7]
- one member selected by the majority leader of the Iowa State Senate
- one member selected by the majority leader of the Iowa House of Representatives
- one member selected by the minority leader of the Iowa State Senate
- one member selected by the minority leader of the Iowa House of Representatives
- one member selected by the first four members
The members of this commission cannot "hold partisan public office or an office in a political party, and none may be a relative or employee of a federal or state legislator (or the legislature as a whole)."[7]
Working with this commission, the LSA drafts congressional and state legislative district lines. The maps are presented as a single bill to the state legislature, which may approve or reject the bill without altering it (the legislature can provide feedback). If the legislature rejects the plan, the LSA must draft a second proposal. If the legislature rejects the second proposal, the LSA must draft a third, and final, set of maps. If the legislature rejects this plan, it may then approve its own maps. Since the implementation of this process in 1980, the state legislature has never chosen not to approve an LSA proposal. Redistricting plans are also subject to gubernatorial veto. In addition, the legislature may repeal or revise the maps at any time, though it has never done so.[7]
State law establishes the following criteria for both congressional and state legislative districts:[7]
- Districts must be "convenient and contiguous."
- Districts must "preserve the integrity of political subdivisions like counties and cities."
- Districts must "to the extent consistent with other requirements, [be] reasonably compact–defined in terms of regular polygons, comparisons of length and width, and overall boundary perimeter."
In addition, state House districts are required to be contained within state Senate districts "where possible, and where not in conflict with the criteria above." It is explicit in state law that district lines cannot be drawn "to favor a political party, incumbent, or other person or group."[7]
Iowa State Senate District 45
until January 2, 2023
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Iowa State Senate District 45
starting January 3, 2023
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Elections
2022
- See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Iowa State Senate District 45
Janice Weiner defeated Harold Weilbrenner in the general election for Iowa State Senate District 45 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Janice Weiner (D)  | 82.0 | 20,273 |
| Harold Weilbrenner (R) | 17.9 | 4,428 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 27 | ||
| Total votes: 24,728 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 45
Janice Weiner defeated John Raley in the Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 45 on June 7, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Janice Weiner | 86.0 | 6,297 |
 | John Raley | 13.9 | 1,016 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 9 | ||
| Total votes: 7,322 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2018
- See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2018
General election
General election for Iowa State Senate District 45
Incumbent Jim Lykam won election in the general election for Iowa State Senate District 45 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jim Lykam (D) | 96.1 | 14,629 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 3.9 | 599 | ||
| Total votes: 15,228 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 45
Incumbent Jim Lykam advanced from the Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 45 on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jim Lykam | 100.0 | 2,324 |
| Total votes: 2,324 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
A special election for the position of Iowa State Senate District 45 was called for December 27.[8]
The seat was vacant following Joe Seng's (D) death on September 16, 2016.[9]
State Rep. Jim Lykam (D) defeated Mike Gonzales (R) in the special election.[10][11]
2014
- See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for the Iowa State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 3, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 14, 2014. Incumbent Joe M. Seng defeated Mark James Riley in the Democratic primary and was unchallenged in the general election.[12][13][14]
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
 Joe Seng Incumbent |
82% | 614 |
| Mark Riley | 18% | 135 |
| Total Votes | 749 | |
2010
- See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2010
Elections for the office of Iowa State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 8, 2010, and a general election on November 2, 2010. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 19, 2010. Sandra Greiner (R) defeated incumbent Becky Schmitz (D) and Douglas Phillips (Iowa Party) in the general election. Schmitz was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while Greiner defeated Randy Besick and Rick Marlar in the Republican primary.[15][16]
| Iowa State Senate, District 45, General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Sandra Greiner |
50.7% | 11,664 | |
| Republican | Becky Schmitz Incumbent | 44.3% | 10,196 | |
| Iowa Party | Douglas Phillips | 4.9% | 1,131 | |
| Total Votes | 22,991 | |||
| Iowa State Senate, District 45 Republican Primary, 2010 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Sandra Greiner |
66.3% | 3,811 |
| Randy Besick | 22% | 1,261 |
| Rick Marlar | 11.7% | 672 |
| Total Votes | 5,744 | |
Campaign contributions
From 2000 to 2022, candidates for Iowa State Senate District 45 raised a total of $1,592,872. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $83,835 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money
| Campaign contributions, Iowa State Senate District 45 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Amount | Candidates | Average |
| 2022 | $60,971 | 3 | $20,324 |
| 2018 | $105,333 | 1 | $105,333 |
| 2014 | $20,706 | 2 | $10,353 |
| 2012 | $4,611 | 1 | $4,611 |
| 2010 | $716,232 | 5 | $143,246 |
| 2008 | $26,481 | 1 | $26,481 |
| 2006 | $369,062 | 2 | $184,531 |
| 2004 | $7,380 | 1 | $7,380 |
| 2002 | $278,451 | 2 | $139,226 |
| 2000 | $3,645 | 1 | $3,645 |
| Total | $1,592,872 | 19 | $83,835 |
See also
- Iowa State Legislature
- Iowa State Senate
- Iowa House of Representatives
- Iowa state legislative districts
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ JUSTIA US Law, "Iowa Code, Section 39.8 - Term of office," accessed November 1, 2021
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Terms of Offices for Elected Officials," accessed November 1, 2021
- ↑ Iowa Constitution, "Article 3, Section 5," accessed May 21, 2025
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
- ↑ Iowa General Assembly, "Iowa Code - 2021," accessed February 9, 2021 (Statute 69.14)
- ↑ Des Moines Register, "Iowa lawmakers accept second redistricting plan, setting up next decade of politics," October 28, 2021
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 All About Redistricting, "Iowa," accessed April 21, 2015
- ↑ Office of the Governor, "Gov. Branstad sets Senate District 45 Special Election for Dec. 27, 2016," accessed September 23, 2016
- ↑ Des Moines Register, "Iowa State Sen. Joe Seng dies after battling cancer," accessed September 21, 2016
- ↑ The Desmoines Register, "Ballot set for Iowa Senate special election," accessed November 18, 2016
- ↑ Des Moines Register, "Jim Lykam wins Scott County special election in walkover win," accessed December 28, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official primary election candidate list," accessed March 18, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed June 30, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official general election results," accessed December 1, 2014
- ↑ "2010 Iowa Primary Results," October 16, 2013
- ↑ "Official Iowa State Senate November 2, 2010 Election Results," accessed October 16, 2013
