Dunwell gets more than half the votes in Jasper County

Jon Dunwell has won the Iowa House District 38 seat, according to preliminary results released by the auditor’s office on Election Day. When Newton News contacted him on his victory, he was excited not only for himself but for all the Republican candidates who swept the races on Jasper County ballots.

With 7,158 votes out of a total 12,276 votes, Dunwell earned more than half of votes — 58.31 percent — than Democratic candidate Erick Zehr and Libertarian challenger Michael Wood. Zehr received 4,612 votes, or 37.57 percent, and Wood earned 503 votes, or 4.10 percent.

Dunwell was “elated” to see the results, saying that he continues to get more in sync with Jasper County and what it is all about.

“I feel relieved I don’t have to run for at least a year a half if I choose to run again,” Dunwell said with a laugh. “I get a summer next summer.”

Republicans scored big in Jasper County. With more and more registered voters leaning right and the representation following suit, the party has a strong hold on the county. Dunwell said Jasper County Republicans know how to work together, and he highly credited the party’s leadership and camaraderie toward the win.

“We had a great team of volunteers this year that just worked hard and we’re focused on helping each other, really, with our combined message and our combined goal of winning these races,” Dunwell said, noting Republican chair Thad Nearmyer also kept the party focused on its goals. “It’s just exciting.”

Wood, a Libertarian, told Newton News in a statement that he would like to thank all the people that voted for him, as well as his wife and family for their help and support. Of course, he is disappointed that he did not win. But Wood is looking at the numbers in a more positive way.

“…The plus side is that I received three times the votes compared the registered libertarians in the district,” Wood said.

Zehr was disappointed by the loss. He felt like he let people down and it has been difficult for him to come to terms with that. Zehr knew a loss would be hard, but he never expected this. Overall, he believes he accomplished his goals of elevating the issues and trying to push for leadership rather than partisanship.

“These are people. They’re more than just a vote. The interactions I had on the trail and the conversations that I’ve had, and the people who have sent me incredible messages and given incredible gestures to me — if there’s anything that shows me the people in this county are worth fighting for it’s that,” Zehr said.