Congressman Randy Feenstra conceded the Republican nomination for governor Tuesday night, speaking to family, friends, campaign staff, and supporters gathered at The Grain House in his hometown of Hull.
The Republican primary was called shortly before midnight Tuesday, with Republican candidate Zach Lahn defeating Feenstra and earning the party’s nomination for governor. Lahn will face Democratic nominee Rob Sand in November.
Feenstra did not take questions from reporters following his remarks.
Governor’s Race
Lahn narrowly won one of Iowa’s most closely watched primary contests, finishing with 80,765 votes, or 37.65% of the Republican vote. Feenstra received 79,113 votes, or 36.88%. Adam Steen finished third with 14.49%, followed by Brad Sherman at 7.03% and Eddie Andrews at 3.59%.
The margin between Lahn and Feenstra was fewer than 2,000 votes statewide.
Despite the statewide loss, Feenstra carried his home county. In Sioux County, Feenstra received 47.94% of the Republican primary vote, compared to 39.34% for Lahn.
Speaking before supporters in Hull, Feenstra reflected on the outcome of the race.
Before ending the evening, Feenstra led supporters in prayer, expressing gratitude for the campaign and asking for guidance for Lahn moving forward.
Fourth District Congressional Race
The race to succeed Feenstra in Iowa’s Fourth Congressional District is now set.
Republican Chris McGowan advanced to the November general election after receiving 54,987 votes, or 99.31% of the Republican primary vote.
On the Democratic side, Dave Dawson secured the nomination with 11,261 votes, or 39.00%. Stephanie Steiner received 8,803 votes (30.49%), while Ashley WolfTornabane finished with 8,767 votes (30.37%).
Dawson and McGowan will face each other in November.
Sioux County Democrats also favored Dawson, who received 38.68% of the local vote. WolfTornabane received 33.33%, while Steiner finished with 27.99%.
U.S. Senate Race
Iowa’s U.S. Senate race also took shape Tuesday night.
Republican Ashley Hinson defeated Jim Carlin in the GOP primary, receiving 153,179 votes, or 73.92%, compared to Carlin’s 25.77%.
Among Democrats, Josh Turek defeated Zach Wahls, receiving 120,438 votes, or 62.53%. Wahls finished with 37.32%.
Hinson and Turek will now advance to the November general election.
In Sioux County, Hinson received 62.24% of the Republican vote, while Carlin earned 37.76%.
State Auditor Race
With Rob Sand running for governor, Iowa voters also selected nominees for the open state auditor’s office.
Republican Chris Cournoyer defeated Abigail Maas, receiving 53.96% of the statewide vote. Maas finished with 45.70%.
Democrat Taylor Wettach advanced unopposed.
Sioux County Republicans mirrored the statewide outcome, giving Cournoyer 54.11% of the vote compared to Maas’s 45.89%.
Sioux County Results
The only contested county-level race in Sioux County was the Republican primary for Supervisor District 2.
Jerry Muilenburg defeated John Fernstrum by a vote of 625 to 505 and advances to the November general election.
In Supervisor District 4, Carl Vande Weerd was unopposed in the Republican primary.
Other Local Results
In neighboring Lyon County, Cody Hoefert defeated Damon Pedersen 351 votes to 247 in the Republican primary for Supervisor District 4.
With no Democratic candidate filed for the seat, Hoefert is positioned to become the county’s next supervisor pending the November election.
Turnout
Turnout in Sioux County exceeded the statewide average.
County officials reported 6,237 ballots cast among 23,494 registered voters, a turnout rate of 26.55%.
Statewide, 414,752 ballots had been cast among 2,147,930 registered voters, representing a turnout rate of 19.31% with 98 of Iowa’s 99 counties reporting late Tuesday night.
Many considered the statewide turnout lower than expected.
