Janet Petersen
Janet Petersen (Democratic Party) is a member of the Iowa State Senate, representing District 18. She assumed office on January 2, 2013. Her current term ends on January 2, 2029.
Petersen (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Iowa State Senate to represent District 18. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Biography
Petersen earned her B.A. in Communications/Public Relations from the University of Northern Iowa in 1992 and her M.A. in Integrated Communications from Drake University in 1999.
Committee assignments
2025-2026
Petersen was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Appropriations Committee
- Senate Commerce Committee
- Senate Ethics Committee
- Health and Human Services
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Senate Ways and Means Committee
- Fiscal Committee
- Capital Projects Committee
2023-2024
Petersen was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Appropriations Committee, Ranking Member
- Senate Commerce Committee
- Senate Government Oversight Committee
- Health and Human Services
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Senate Ways and Means Committee
- Capital Projects Committee, Chair
- Fiscal Committee
2021-2022
Petersen was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Appropriations Committee
- Senate Commerce Committee
- Senate Government Oversight Committee
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Senate Ways and Means Committee
2019-2020
Petersen was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Commerce Committee
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Rules and Administration Committee, Ranking Member
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Iowa committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Commerce |
| • Government Oversight |
| • Judiciary |
| • State Government |
| • Ways and Means |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Petersen served on the following committees:
| Iowa committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Commerce, Chair |
| • Judiciary |
| • Natural Resources & Environment |
| • State Government |
| • Ways and Means |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Petersen served on the following committees:
| Iowa committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
| • Commerce, Vice chair |
| • Government Oversight, Chair |
| • Judiciary |
| • State Government |
| • Ways and Means |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Petersen served on the following committees:
| Iowa committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Government Oversight |
| • Human Resources |
| • Transportation |
| • Ways and Means |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Petersen served on the following committees:
| Iowa committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Commerce, Chair |
| • Human Resources |
| • Ways and Means |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2024
See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2024
General election
General election for Iowa State Senate District 18
Incumbent Janet Petersen won election in the general election for Iowa State Senate District 18 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Janet Petersen (D) | 97.1 | 25,564 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.9 | 766 | ||
| Total votes: 26,330 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 18
Incumbent Janet Petersen advanced from the Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 18 on June 4, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Janet Petersen | 99.4 | 4,087 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.6 | 23 | ||
| Total votes: 4,110 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Petersen in this election.
2020
See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for Iowa State Senate District 18
Incumbent Janet Petersen won election in the general election for Iowa State Senate District 18 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Janet Petersen (D) | 97.3 | 20,696 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.7 | 565 | ||
| Total votes: 21,261 | |||
| = 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 18
Incumbent Janet Petersen advanced from the Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 18 on June 2, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Janet Petersen | 99.4 | 7,438 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.6 | 43 | ||
| Total votes: 7,481 | |||
| = 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
- See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Iowa State Senate were held in 2016. The primary election took place on June 7, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 18, 2016.
Incumbent Janet Petersen ran unopposed in the Iowa State Senate District 18 general election.[1][2]
| Iowa State Senate, District 18 General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic |  Janet Petersen Incumbent (unopposed) | |
| Source: Iowa Secretary of State | ||
Incumbent Janet Petersen ran unopposed in the Iowa State Senate District 18 Democratic primary.[3][4]
| Iowa State Senate, District 18 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Janet Petersen Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2012
- See also: Iowa State Senate elections, 2012
Petersen ran in the 2012 election for Iowa State Senate District 18. She ran unopposed in the Democratic primary on June 5, 2012, and defeated Vicki Stogdill in the general election on November 6, 2012.[5][6]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Janet Petersen |
69.2% | 18,954 | |
| Republican | Vicki Stogdill | 30.8% | 8,455 | |
| Total Votes | 27,409 | |||
2010
Petersen won re-election to the 64th District seat against Dan Kennedy (R). Petersen had no opposition in the Democratic primary. The general election took place on November 2, 2010.[7]
| Iowa House of Representatives, District 64 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Janet Petersen (D)
|
6,689 | |||
| Dan Kennedy (R) | 3,626 | |||
| Vicki Stogdill (Ind) | 1,490 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Petersen was re-elected to the 64th District Seat in the Iowa House of Representatives, defeating Steve Svejda (R).[8] Petersen raised $75,960 for her campaign, while Svejda raised $444.[9]
| Iowa House of Representatives, District 64 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Janet Petersen (D)
|
10,259 | |||
| Steve Svejda (R) | 5,034 | |||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Janet Petersen did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Janet Petersen did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Iowa scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 8 to April 20.
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2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 9 to May 4.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 10 to May 24.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 11 to May 19.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 13 to June 14. The session was suspended from March 16 through June 3.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 14 through April 27.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 8 through May 5.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 9 through April 22.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 11 through April 29.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 12 through June 5.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 85th Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 13 through May 2.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Iowa State Legislature was in session from January 14 to May 23.
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Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Petersen is a member of the 21st Century Forum, American Danish Brotherhood, Des Moines Arts Festival Board of Directors, Big Sister with Big Brothers/Big Sisters, on the Board of Directors of the Small Business Development Centers and a member of the Walnut Hills Methodist Church. Petersen served on the Staff of the 1992 Clinton/Gore Presidential Campaign, was a Lobbyist for the American Heart Association and a Senior Account Executive for Strategic America.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Iowa State Senate District 18 |
Officeholder Iowa State Senate District 18 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "General Candidate List, 2016," accessed August 24, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "2016 General Election Canvass Summary," accessed December 16, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Candidate Listing by Office," March 21, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Election Canvass Summary," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official Primary Results," accessed October 1, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Department of Elections, "2012 Primary Candidates," accessed April 17, 2012
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official 2010 General election results," accessed October 1, 2014
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Official 2008 General election results," accessed April 7, 2014
- ↑ Follow The Money, "Funds raised by 2008 Iowa House candidates," accessed April 7, 2014
- ↑ ACLU Iowa, "Legislative Report & Civil Liberties Scorecard," accessed July 11, 2017
- ↑ ACLU of Iowa, "Legislative Report & Civil Liberties Scorecard," accessed July 11, 2017
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Iowa State Senate District 18 2013-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Iowa House of Representatives District 64 2001-2013 |
Succeeded by - |
