Overview
- Hardman defeated Republican Lucas Loftin in District 16, filling the seat left vacant by the Oct. 6 death of Democratic Sen. Claire Celsi.
- Republicans remain at 33 seats to Democrats’ 17, one short of the 34 needed for two-thirds control of the 50-member chamber.
- Iowa requires a two-thirds vote for veto overrides, calling special sessions, authorizing certain payments, and confirming some gubernatorial appointees, according to the Senate secretary.
- Hardman, CEO of Lutheran Services of Iowa and a West Des Moines City Council member, becomes the first Black woman elected to the Iowa Senate.
- The West Des Moines–area district leans Democratic by registration, yet the holiday-week timing added turnout uncertainty in the sixth Iowa special election of 2025.