Iowa primaries finalize Statehouse races as legislative leaders look …

With the primary election finished, incumbent state lawmakers and newcomers aiming to fill vacancies who won in state House and Senate races Tuesday are now preparing for the general election campaign season.

The primary election determined which candidates will appear on ballots in the Nov. 5 general election. Though candidates from both parties went unopposed in many of the state legislative races, voters in some districts chose nominees for open seats following retirements, while others decided races against sitting lawmakers.

Iowans also voted in contested primaries in three of Iowa’s four congressional districts. However, turnout was low. Only 8% — 183,630 registered voters — participated, according to the Iowa Secretary of State’s office. It’s a sharp decrease from primaries in 2020 and 2022 when 522,000 and 356,000 voters cast their ballots in primary elections, the two highest primary turnouts since 1994.

With the primaries…