Hardman’s election to the Iowa state Senate will keep Republicans from reaching a two-thirds supermajority that, according to the AP report, would have given the party a stronger ability to confirm Gov. Kim Reynolds’ appointments. The race unfolded as a year-end special election after the Oct. 6 death of Democratic Sen. Claire Celsi, leaving one seat in the 50-member chamber open for voters in parts of the Des Moines suburbs.
Hardman, a CEO of Lutheran Services of Iowa and a member of the West Des Moines City Council, defeated Republican Lucas Loftin in the Tuesday contest. With 99% of votes counted, the AP reported that Hardman led by about 43 percentage points, a margin the AP described as overwhelming.
The AP report said Hardman told supporters in West Des Moines after declaring victory: “I want to recognize that while my name was the one on the ballot, this race was never just about me.” The AP also said the special election made Hardman the first Black woman elected to the Iowa Senate.
The contest carried broader implications for party power in Iowa’s Legislature. The AP report said Republicans would have regained two-thirds control with a Loftin win, and without that threshold, the party would need support from at least one Democrat to approve Reynolds’ nominees. The AP also said Republicans still hold significant majorities in both legislative chambers.
The Iowa contest continued a pattern of Democratic special-election wins described by the AP. It said Democrat Mike Zimmer flipped a seat in January, Democrat Catelin Drey defeated her Republican opponent in August in northwestern Iowa, and Celsi’s death later reduced Democrats’ seat count to 16. The AP said Democrats also won two Senate seats earlier in 2025 to break up a supermajority that had helped Republicans confirm Reynolds’ appointees.
National party leaders framed the Hardman result as part of a larger political momentum story. The AP report said Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, called Hardman’s victory “a major check on Republican power,” and said Martin argued 2025 was “the year of Democratic victories and overperformance” with Democrats “on track for big midterm elections.”
Republicans, meanwhile, argued the district remained competitive but said they would keep pushing for bigger legislative majorities. The AP reported that Lucas Loftin congratulated Hardman and told the Associated Press he is praying for her as she begins the new role. The AP also reported that Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufmann said “a very tough district” produced a close race and that the party remained focused on expanding its majorities and keeping Iowa “ruby-red.”
In addition, the AP said the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee pledged to defend the party’s gains in Iowa and to prevent a GOP supermajority from returning next year.