Post-Election Edition
The 2020 election has come to a close, but there are still major questions to be answered, including the fate of the Presidency. As the dust settles, here are the big picture takeaways from last night. In addition to the information provided in this newsletter, see the Cornerstone Government Affairs report attached. Look for additional updates from IowaBio as more information shakes out in the next few days.
Big stories:
Presidential With several swing states still yet to fully count ballots, whether President Trump will get another four years, or Joe Biden will come out the winner is yet to be determined. This situation is evolving as this update is published. Currently the AP has not called Wisconsin, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, North Carolina or Georgia. We will be particularly watching Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan as those states are likely to determine the outcome of this Presidential election. The winner must reach 270 electoral votes. States that have been called give Biden the lead at 238, while Trump has 213. It is clear that the results of this election did not match up to the majority of polls, especially national polls that had Biden winning the popular point by double digits. Currently the popular vote is 50.1% to Biden and 48.3% to Trump.
US Senate Democrats needed to win a net gain of three seats to gain control in the chamber. The composition of the Senate prior to the elections was 53 to 27. At this point, democrats have flipped two seats and Republicans have flipped one; resulting in one net gain for the democrats. As of the time of this writing, it is projected that Republicans will still control the US Senate. This will be extremely impactful particularly if Biden prevails as President, to act as a check on the Democrat House and Presidency. For more on the Iowa Ernst/Greenfield race see below.
Iowa House The Iowa House was closely watched given the number of open seats and tossup races. Both parties raised and spent record amounts fighting for control of this chamber. All 100 House members were up for reelection this year, and Republicans held the majority 53 to 47. Republican Governor Kim Reynolds was not up for reelection and will not be on the ballot until 2022, heightening the focus on the possibility of flipping the House to Democrat control. As of this morning, it appears the Republicans had a huge night, picking up a net six seats and clearly not only holding their majority but solidifying it. For a breakdown of key races see the attached report by Cornerstone Government Affairs. There could be recounts but overall it is clear that Republicans will maintain control over the Iowa House of Representatives.
Iowa Legislature Overall Going into the election the Iowa House and Senate were both held by Republicans. The Senate Republicans had a significant majority at 32 to 18. 25 of the 50 Senate seats were on the ballot. Now the chambers break down like this:
Iowa House: 59 Republicans 41 Democrats
Iowa Senate: 32 Republicans 18 Democrats
Iowa’s Federal Races
Ernst/Greenfield US Senate Race This tossup race was hotly contested with money pouring into Iowa from both sides and near constant political ads running on all platforms for months leading up to the election. Incumbent Senator Joni Ernst wins the reelection holding a key and carefully watched seat in the US Senate. This is a huge win for Ernst who combated over $100M in attack ads by her democratic contender Theresa Greenfield.
Finkenauer/Hinson 1st Congressional District Although Democrat incumbent Abby Finkenauer has not yet conceded the race, Republican State Representative Ashley Hinson looks to have upset the congresswoman in the first district.
Miller-Meeks/Hart 2nd Congressional District As of this morning Republican Miller-Meeks looks to have the edge over Democrat Rita Hart in this open seat, but this one is within less than three hundred votes. It will likely come down to last minute absentee votes and a potential recount before results are official.
Axne/Young 3rd Congressional District Democrat Cindy Axne won a surprisingly narrow victory over former Republican Congressman David Young who she defeated in the last election, to retain her congressional seat.
Feenstra/Scholten 4th Congressional District Republican State Senator Randy Feenstra easily defeated Democrat challenger J.D. Scholten to take over Steve King’s former seat.
Sincerely,
Jessica
Jessica Hyland, J.D.
Executive Director
Iowa Biotechnology Association
Cell: (515) 822-1315
Office: (515) 327-9156
Fax: (515) 327-1407
jessica@iowabio.org
www.iowabio.org
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