Iowa's thirtieth state senate district is represented by Democratic Senator Eric Giddens.

Iowa state senators represent an average of 60,927 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 58,586 residents.

About the chamber

Members of the Iowa State Senate serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Half of the senate is up for re-election every two years. Iowa legislators assume office the first day of January after their election.

Qualifications

The Iowa Constitution states, "Senators shall be chosen for the term of four years, at the same time and place as representatives; they shall be twenty-five years of age, and possess the qualifications of representatives as to residence and citizenship."

Salaries

Vacancies

If a vacancy occurs in the Senate, the governor must call for a special election within five days of the vacancy. If the vacancy happens while the Senate is in session, the governor can call the election to be held as soon as possible. However, a minimum 18-day notice is required. All other special elections require a 45-day notice as long as there are no school elections scheduled on the same day.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of Iowa State Senate will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for June 2, 2020. The filing deadline is March 13, 2020.

2019

Cedar Falls School Board member Eric Giddens (D) defeated former state Rep. Walt Rogers (R) in a special election on March 19, 2019, for the District 30 seat in the Iowa State Senate. Giddens received 57 percent of the vote, while Rogers received 42 percent of the vote. The seat became vacant after Jeff Danielson (D) resigned on February 14, 2019. In the announcement of his resignation, Danielson said, "I’m closing two wonderful chapters in my life, 25 years as a firefighter and 15 years as a state senator, and I’m opening a new exciting chapter for which we’ll be able to share at a later date.” Candidates in this race were chosen by party conventions rather than through primary elections.

The appearance of current and potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates in the district helped this race garner national attention. To read more about the involvement of national politicians, . The district voted Democratic in the past two presidential elections. In 2012, Obama won the district by 7.4 percent. In 2016, Clinton won the district by 3.5 percent.

Heading into the election, Republicans held a 32-17 majority in the Iowa State Senate. A party needs 34 votes in the Senate in order to override a gubernatorial veto, so the outcome of this election did not impact either partisan control or vetoproof supermajority status.

2016

Elections for the Iowa State Senate were held in 2016. The primary election took place on June 7, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 18, 2016.

Incumbent Jeff Danielson defeated Bonnie Sadler in the Iowa State Senate District 30 general election.

Iowa State Senate, District 30 General Election, 2016

Incumbent Jeff Danielson ran unopposed in the Iowa State Senate District 30 Democratic primary.
Bonnie Sadler ran unopposed in the Iowa State Senate District 30 Republican primary.

This district was included in the Republican State Leadership Committee's list of "16 in '16: Races to Watch." Read more »

2012

Elections for the office of Iowa State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 5, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 16, 2012. Incumbent Jeff Danielson (D) defeated Matt Reisetter (R) in the general election. Neither candidate faced opposition in their primary.

Iowa State Senate, District 30, General Election, 2012

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2016, candidates for Iowa State Senate District 30 raised a total of $1,931,985. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $137,999 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Iowa State Senate District 30