Small Town News

Pierce stuns Supervisors Chair Darling in primary

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Lonnie Pierce of Bluffton has defeated Board of Supervisors Chairman Dean Darling in the District 1 Winneshiek County Board of Supervisors Republican primary race.

Pierce received 207 votes (51 percent), while Darling received 195 (49 percent). According to Winneshiek County Auditor Ben Steines, there are still 11 absentee ballots out; however, they will not affect the District 1 race, as they are from a variety of voting Districts.

Darling is finishing his third four-year term on the Board and his. sixth year as chairman.

Pierce owns his own business, Pierce Industrial Electronics, which specializes in repair of industrial controls - primarily for plastic processing equipment.

Pierce will face Mark Kuhn of Spillville in the general election.

Steines said voter turnout was 11 percent, which he considers good for a primary.

There were 447 Democratic ballots cast and 1,139 Republican ballots cast.

Governor's race

In the gubernatorial contest, 67 percent of Winneshiek County Republicans voted for former Governor Terry Branstad.

Branstad received 891 votes, while Sioux City businessman Bob Vander Plaats received 362 votes and State representative Rod Roberts of Carroll received 81. Statewide, Branstad received 51 percent of vote, Vander Plaats received 40 percent and Roberts received 9 percent.

Branstad will face incumbent Governor Chet Culver in the November election.

U.S. Senator

Democrat Roxanne Conlin of Des Moines received 87 percent of the Winneshiek County vote, with 388 votes, while Tom Fiegen received 6 percent and Bob Krause received 7 percent.

Statewide, Conlin received 80 percent of the vote, while Fiegen and Krause each received 10 percent.

She will run against 30-year incumbent Republican Senator Chuck Grassley in the general election.

Secretary of State

In the Republican race for Secretary of State, Matt Schultz received 44 percent of the Winneshiek County vote, with Chris Sanger receiving 32 percent and George Eichhorn receiving 24 percent.

Statewide, Schultz claimed 47 percent of the vote, while Eichhorn and Sanger garnered 27 and 26 percent, respectively.

Schultz will challenge Democratic incumbent Mike Mauro in the general election.

State Treasurer

In the local Republican contest for state treasurer, Story County Treasurer David Jamison received 64 percent of the vote, while Dy-ersville Mayor James Heavens received 36 percent.

Jamison beat Heavens by a margin of two to one. Jamison will face seven-term Democratic State Treasurer Mike Fitzgerald in the fall.

In the uncontested local races, Democratic State Representative John Beard of Decorah received 343 votes.

Beard may face a challenge from Dorchester Republican Bob Hager, who will seek the nomination at an upcoming special nominating convention.

Spillville Mayor Mike Klimesh (R.) received 296 votes for the state senate District 15 seat, while incumbent Democrat Brian Quirk received 73.

The two will face each other in this fall's election.



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© 2011 The Decorah Journal Decorah, Iowa. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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