Jennifer Smith (Iowa)

Jennifer Smith (Republican Party) is a member of the Iowa House of Representatives, representing District 72. She assumed office on January 1, 2025. Her current term ends on January 1, 2027.

Smith (Republican Party) ran for election to the Iowa House of Representatives to represent District 72. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Jennifer Smith was born in Madison, Wisconsin. She earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Illinois State University in 1995, a master's degree in economics from Illinois State University in 1997, and a Ph.D. in economics from Northern Illinois University in 2008. Smith's career experience includes working as an associate professor of economics.^[1]

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Jennifer Smith defeated incumbent Charles Isenhart in the general election for Iowa House of Representatives District 72 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Jennifer Smith (R)	53.2	8,575
	Charles Isenhart (D)	46.6	7,513
	Other/Write-in votes	0.2	26

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 16,114
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Incumbent Charles Isenhart advanced from the Democratic primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72 on June 4, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Charles Isenhart	99.4	640
	Other/Write-in votes	0.6	4

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 644
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Jennifer Smith defeated Rod Warnke in the Republican primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72 on June 4, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jennifer Smith	77.1	793
	Submit photo	Rod Warnke	22.9	236

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,029
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Campaign finance

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Smith in this election.

2022

General election

General election for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Incumbent Charles Isenhart defeated Jennifer Smith in the general election for Iowa House of Representatives District 72 on November 8, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Charles Isenhart (D)	50.3	6,164
	Jennifer Smith (R)	49.6	6,070
	Other/Write-in votes	0.1	13

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 12,247
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Incumbent Charles Isenhart advanced from the Democratic primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72 on June 7, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Charles Isenhart	99.5	2,374
	Other/Write-in votes	0.5	11

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,385
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Jennifer Smith defeated Gregory A. Parker in the Republican primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72 on June 7, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jennifer Smith	59.3	761
	Submit photo	Gregory A. Parker	40.5	520
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	2

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,283
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2020

General election

General election for Iowa State Senate District 50

Incumbent Pam Jochum defeated Jennifer Smith in the general election for Iowa State Senate District 50 on November 3, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Pam Jochum (D)	58.7	18,044
	Jennifer Smith (R)	41.2	12,677
	Other/Write-in votes	0.1	41

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 30,762
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 50

Incumbent Pam Jochum advanced from the Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 50 on June 2, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Pam Jochum	99.6	7,844
	Other/Write-in votes	0.4	35

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 7,879
= 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.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Iowa State Senate District 50

Jennifer Smith advanced from the Republican primary for Iowa State Senate District 50 on June 2, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Jennifer Smith	99.3	3,018
	Other/Write-in votes	0.7	22

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,040
= 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.
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Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

Jennifer Smith did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Jennifer Smith did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Jennifer Smith completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Smith's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

As an economist and educator, I have a special perspective of how best to create a welcoming environment for new jobs for our community. My goal is to pursue pro-growth policies in the Iowa Senate, remove barriers to job growth, and pursue higher wages for the hard working people of Dubuque. I believe focusing on how to develop and retain a workforce and increasing educational opportunities for everyone are key parts of growing our community and state.

I graduated from Illinois State University with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics and with a Master's Degree in economics. After working in insurance and finance for several years, I earned her Ph.D. in economics from Northern Illinois University. I has taught classes at Heartland Community College, Illinois Wesleyan University, and Northern Illinois University. Currently, I teach at Loras College.

I am committed to running a grassroots campaign focused on meeting with my neighbors and fellow residents of Dubuque at their doors and throughout our city. I will listen to their concerns and represent their interests in Des Moines. I believe more can be done to see improve career opportunities and increase wages in our community and I look forward to communicating that message to voters throughout this campaign.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Stronger Jobs - In order to keep and maintain our workforce, we need to improve the quality of jobs available to our young people. By providing incentives to companies and small businesses to make their home here, we will retain talent and invite new families into our neighborhoods.
Stronger Schools - As an educator myself, I am deeply concerned with the condition of our youth and their schools. They are not being given the tools they need to be successful, self-sufficient adults. It's time to change the way we teach our kids, through opportunities like trade schools and revamped education.
Stronger Community - Our shared values hold us together. The importance of protecting life at all stages and the ability to defend one's home and family are essential to our foundation, but they must be protected at every turn. I am dedicated to standing up for your rights and the lives of the unborn.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Constitutional Rights, Education, Life, Employment, Taxes

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Fred Rogers, aka Mr. Rogers, had a profound influence on me as a child. He accepted me for whoever I was at the moment. He was always kind to everyone he met and loved everyone. I strive to make people feel valued the way Mister Rogers did for me.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am willing to fight for what is important to my constituents. I have never been afraid to tackle a problem or disagreement head on and will work diligintly to identify a solution that is in the best interest of all involved. I have had to take on disagreements in both my personal and professional life, and have been successful in achieving a beneficial outcome.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I want my niece and nephew to see that it is important to do all you can to stand up for what you believe is important. If you see a problem or injustice, it is your responsibility as a member of society to stand up and face the issue, not wait for someone else to come along. Being willing to stand up is not always easy, and sometimes you are alone, but if it is truly important, it is worth the effort.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster. I was in Social Studies class when we were told what had happened. I remember a television being brought into the classroom so we could watch the coverage. I also remember being shocked and feeling numb by the event. I was in 8th grade.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I delivered the Pennysaver, which was a weekly advertiser newspaper, door to door from ages 13-15.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Beautiful Joe by Marshall Saunders. It is a story of a dog who was horribly abused, resulting in disfigurement, but was rescued by a loving individual. Joe never let his rough beginnings stop his ability to love and enjoy life, and felt he was the luckiest and most beautiful dog that lived due to the love he had from his rescuer. I read this as a young child, and it has stuck with me. I learned we should never judge anyone since we do not know their story or what they may have had occur in the past, and our past does not define who we are in the future.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

The United States is meant to have individuals from everyday life spend some of their lives in the service of others. One way is through service as a legislator. Having individuals from all walks of life serving in the legislature allows for a diverse set of viewpoints being brought into the discussion when trying to determine what is best for the state. Those who are not career politicians are able to fully see how the policies and laws that are passed by the legislature impact citizens, rather than basing the laws on theory and beliefs.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

. Yes. Building relationships with fellow legislators is critical to effective legislation. Elected individuals come to serve our state from many different backgrounds. It is imperative to discuss different ideas in order to fully evaluate the impact of legislation on different parts of the state, either geographically or economically. What may work in one area may not be appropriate in a different area, thus these differences need to be worked out and can only be done so if there are good relationships and respect among the legislators.

Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

I have heard of stories concerning grandparents rights. Without violating confidences, there are grandparents who are not allowed to see their grandchildren due to the loss of parental rights by one parent and the refusal of the other. Grandparents are important in the development and growth of a child by letting them know where they came from and that there are more people there who will love and support them. I know there are a lot of complications in dealing with this issue, yet I think a solution can be found which will strengthen the family, including grandparent involvement.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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.

Jennifer Smith campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Iowa House of Representatives District 72	Won general	$400,808	$35,716
2022	Iowa House of Representatives District 72	Lost general	$51,401	$27,392
2020	Iowa State Senate District 50	Lost general	$28,911	N/A**
Grand total			$481,119	$63,109
Sources: OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission *This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Iowa

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.

External links

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Candidate

Iowa House of Representatives District 72

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Iowa House of Representatives District 72

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Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 18, 2020

Political offices
Preceded by Charles Isenhart (D)	Iowa House of Representatives District 72 2025-Present	Succeeded by -

[show]

Current members of the Iowa House of Representatives

Leadership

Majority Leader:Bobby Kaufmann

Representatives

District 1

J.D. Scholten (D)

District 2

Robert Henderson (R)

District 3

Thomas Jeneary (R)

District 4

Skyler Wheeler (R)

District 5

Zach Dieken (R)

District 6

Megan Jones (R)

District 7

Mike Sexton (R)

District 8

Ann Meyer (R)

District 9

Henry Stone (R)

District 10

John Wills (R)

District 11

Craig Williams (R)

District 12

Steven Holt (R)

District 13

Travis Sitzmann (R)

District 14

Jacob Bossman (R)

District 15

Matt Windschitl (R)

District 16

David Sieck (R)

District 17

Devon Wood (R)

District 18

Tom Moore (R)

District 19

Brent Siegrist (R)

District 20

Josh Turek (D)

District 21

Brooke Boden (R)

District 22

Samantha Fett (R)

District 23

Ray Sorensen (R)

District 24

Sam Wengryn (R)

District 25

Hans Wilz (R)

District 26

Austin Harris (R)

District 27

Kenan Judge (D)

District 28

David Young (R)

District 29

Brian Meyer (D)

District 30

Megan Srinivas (D)

District 31

Mary Madison (D)

District 32

Jennifer Konfrst (D)

District 33

Ruth Gaines (D)

District 34

Rob Johnson (D)

District 35

Sean Bagniewski (D)

District 36

Austin Baeth (D)

District 37

Barb McCulla (R)

District 38

Jon Dunwell (R)

District 39

Rick Olson (D)

District 40

Bill Gustoff (R)

District 41

Ryan Weldon (R)

District 42

Heather Matson (D)

District 43

Eddie Andrews (R)

District 44

Larry McBurney (D)

District 45

Brian Lohse (R)

District 46

Dan Gehlbach (R)

District 47

Carter Nordman (R)

District 48

Chad Behn (R)

District 49

Beth Wessel-Kroeschell (D)

District 50

Ross Wilburn (D)

District 51

Brett Barker (R)

District 52

David Blom (R)

District 53

Dean Fisher (R)

District 54

Joshua Meggers (R)

District 55

Shannon Latham (R)

District 56

Mark Thompson (R)

District 57

Pat Grassley (R)

District 58

Charley Thomson (R)

District 59

Christian Hermanson (R)

District 60

Jane Bloomingdale (R)

District 61

Timi Brown-Powers (D)

District 62

Jerome Amos (D)

District 63

Michael Bergan (R)

District 64

Jason Gearhart (R)

District 65

Shannon Lundgren (R)

District 66

Steven Bradley (R)

District 67

Craig Johnson (R)

District 68

Chad Ingels (R)

District 69

Tom Determann (R)

District 70

Norlin Mommsen (R)

District 71

Lindsay James (D)

District 72

Jennifer Smith (R)

District 73

Elizabeth Wilson (D)

District 74

Eric Gjerde (D)

District 75

Bob Kressig (D)

District 76

Derek Wulf (R)

District 77

Jeff Cooling (D)

District 78

Angel Ramirez (D)

District 79

Tracy Ehlert (D)

District 80

Aime Wichtendahl (D)

District 81

Daniel Gosa (D)

District 82

Bobby Kaufmann (R)

District 83

Cindy Golding (R)

District 84

Thomas Gerhold (R)

District 85

Amy Nielsen (D)

District 86

David Jacoby (D)

District 87

Jeff Shipley (R)

District 88

Helena Hayes (R)

District 89

Elinor Levin (D)

District 90

Adam Zabner (D)

District 91

Judd Lawler (R)

District 92

Heather Hora (R)

District 93

Gary Mohr (R)

District 94

Mike Vondran (R)

District 95

Taylor Collins (R)

District 96

Mark Cisneros (R)

District 97

Ken Croken (D)

District 98

Monica Kurth (D)

District 99

Matthew Rinker (R)

District 100

Blaine Watkins (R)

Republican Party (67)

Democratic Party (33)

[bio-1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 18, 2020

[1]

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Jennifer Smith (Iowa)

Biography

Sponsored legislation

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Campaign finance

Endorsements

2022

General election

General election for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Iowa House of Representatives District 72

2020

General election

General election for Iowa State Senate District 50

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Iowa State Senate District 50

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Iowa State Senate District 50

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

2022

2020

Campaign finance summary

Scorecards

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

Trending

Public Policy

Information for candidates

Get Engaged

Services

Additional analysis

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