2018 Iowa Secretary of State election

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2018 Iowa Secretary of State election
Flag of Iowa.svg
←  2014 November 6, 2018 (2018-11-06) 2022  →
Registered2,167,914
Turnout61.55%
  Paul Pate (cropped).jpeg Deidre DeJear (48615658243) (closer crop).jpg
Candidate Paul Pate Deidre DeJear
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote685,780583,774
Percentage52.72%44.87%
Iowa Secretary of State Election Results 2018.svg
2018 Iowa secretary of state election results map by congressional district.svg
Pate:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%
DeJear:     50–60%     60–70%
Secretary of State before election

Paul Pate
Republican

Elected Secretary of State

Paul Pate
Republican

The 2018 Iowa Secretary of State election was held on November 6, 2018, to elect the Secretary of State of Iowa, concurrently with elections to the United States House of Representatives, governor, and other state and local elections. Primary elections were held on June 5, 2018. [1]

Contents

Incumbent Republican secretary of state Paul Pate won re-election to a second consecutive term in office, [a] defeating Democratic nominee Deidre DeJear. [2]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

  • Paul Pate, incumbent secretary of state (2015-present, 1995-1999), mayor of Cedar Rapids (2002-2006), and state senator (1989-1995) [3]

Results

Republican primary results [4]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Paul Pate (incumbent) 88,303 99.63%
Write-in 3270.37%
Total votes88,630 100.00%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

  • Deidre DeJear, marketing firm owner [5]

Eliminated in primary

  • Jim Mowrer, army veteran, professor, and former Pentagon aide [5] [6]

Withdrew before primary

Declined

Results

Democratic primary results [4]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Deidre DeJear 82,221 51.09%
Democratic Jim Mowrer78,40948.72%
Write-in 3120.19%
Total votes160,942 100.00%

General election

Post-primary endorsements

Paul Pate (R)

Organizations

  • Iowa Association of Business and Industry [11]
Deidre DeJear (D)

U.S. presidents

U.S. senators

State officials

Labor unions

Predictions

SourceRankingAs of
Governing [16] TossupOctober 11, 2018

Results

2018 Iowa Secretary of State election [17]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Paul Pate (incumbent) 685,780 52.72%
Democratic Deidre DeJear583,77444.87%
Libertarian Jules Ofenbakh30,8812.37%
Write-in 4820.04%
Total votes1,300,917 100.00%
Republican hold

By congressional district

Pate won all four congressional districts, including three that elected Democrats. [18]

DistrictPateDeJearRepresentative
1st 51%46% Rod Blum (115th Congress)
Abby Finkenauer (116th Congress)
2nd 49%48% Dave Loebsack
3rd 49%48% David Young (115th Congress)
Cindy Axne (116th Congress)
4th 61%37% Steve King

Notes

  1. ↑ Pate previously served as Secretary of State from 1995-1999, before being elected once again in 2014.

References

  1. ↑ "2018 Primary Elections by State and territory" (PDF). Marine Corps Installation East. April 6, 2018. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
  2. ↑ Gruber-Miller, Stephen (November 5, 2018). "Paul Pate, architect of voter ID law, wins third term as Iowa secretary of state" . Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 20, 2025. Pate, 60, of Cedar Rapids, defeated Democrat Deidre DeJear, 32, in the secretary of state race with 53 percent of the vote to DeJear's 45 percent, with all 99 counties reporting.
  3. ↑ Noble, Jason (March 15, 2018). "Secretary of State Paul Pate to run for re-election". Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  4. 1 2 "State of Iowa - Canvass State" (PDF). Iowa Secretary of State. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  5. 1 2 Nozicka, Luke (June 6, 2018). "'I just want you to vote': Deidre DeJear wins Democratic race for Iowa secretary of state". Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  6. ↑ Jacobs, Jennifer (August 16, 2015). "Iraq vet Jim Mowrer running for Congress again". Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 20, 2025. Mowrer, a former Pentagon aide who raised more than $2 million for his last campaign but lost by more than 20 points, had no intention of running until a few months ago, he told The Des Moines Register.
  7. ↑ Barry, Kevin (July 24, 2017). "Johnson County Auditor Travis Weipert talks his run for Secretary of State, voting law". CBS 2 Iowa. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  8. ↑ Gruber-Miller, Stephen (March 20, 2017). "Johnson County Auditor eyes run for Iowa Secretary of State". Iowa City Press-Citizen. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 Rynard, Pat (July 17, 2017). "Everyone Is Running For Everything In Iowa In 2018". Iowa Starting Line. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  10. 1 2 3 Sostaric, Katarina (April 10, 2017). "Four Democratic County Auditors Consider Secretary of State Run in 2018". Iowa Public Radio. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  11. ↑ "ABI's PAC Endorses Friends of Iowa Business". Iowa Association of Business and Industry. September 4, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  12. ↑ Opsahl, Robin (August 1, 2018). "Former President Obama endorsed Iowans for secretary of state and secretary of agriculture". Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 20, 2025. Obama endorsed Deidre DeJear for Secretary of State and Tim Gannon for Secretary of Agriculture, as well as four Democratic state representative nominees in Iowa in a news release.
  13. ↑ Siders, David (August 16, 2018). "Kamala Harris to make first Iowa endorsement". POLITICO. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  14. ↑ Kander, Jason. "Elect Deidre DeJear to protect voting rights in Iowa". Let America Vote. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  15. ↑ "IUOE Local 150 Endorsed Candidates" (PDF). IUOE Local 150. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  16. ↑ Jacobson, Louis (October 11, 2018). "Democrats Maintain the Edge in Secretary of State Races" . Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  17. ↑ "IA - Election Night Reporting". Iowa Secretary of State. December 4, 2018. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  18. ↑ "IA 2020 Congressional". Dave's Redistricting. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
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