Incumbents swept their way to victory in the race for the Iowa City City Council.
In the at-large race, current Mayor Bruce Teague led the way with 7,378 votes (37%), while Megan Alter earned 6,203 votes (31.1%) to fend off a challenge from Clara Reynen, who earned about 18% of the votes, and Newman Abuissa, who garnered about 13% of the vote.
In the District B race, Shawn Harmsen received 5,293 votes (53.8%) to best challenger Amy Hospodarsky, who earned 4,482 votes (45.5%), according to preliminary results from the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office.
Teague, Alter and Harmsen will serve four-year terms through 2029.
Under Iowa City’s charter, the mayor and mayor pro-tempore are elected internally by a council vote in early January, before the first meeting of a new council. Teague has served as mayor since 2020, while Salih was elected mayor pro tem in 2024.
Teague, Alter prevail again in Iowa City’s at-large council race
Megan Alter, 55, earned a second four-year term on the council after pledging to work to increase the city’s tax base to lower the city’s reliance on federal and state funds.
Alter said an expansion of the city’s taxable properties would allow it to maintain its various assistance services and continue to fund parks, the public library, affordable housing initiatives and other future improvement projects.
Alter told the Press-Citizen that she feels “reactivated” by resident engagement and wants to continue to work through the networks that she has developed in the community as a campaigner and a councilor.
“My hope is that we continue to be smart progressives, where we ensure that what we put forward can be sustained,” Alter said. “And that we ensure to the best of our abilities that we are less performative and more just putting our heads down and getting the work done.”
Incumbent Iowa City mayor Bruce Teague, 49, campaigned on promises to continue to counter nationwide division by leading with “love, empathy and understanding.”
Teague also promised to continue to expand housing options by working with developers, non-profits and community partners. Teague was first elected to the council in 2018.
Teague did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Harmsen victorious in District B race
Shawn Harmsen, 52, retained his seat on the council after campaigning to “rise up and counter the fears” that he says are “gripping many in the community because of action on the state and federal level.”
Harmsen also said he wants to continue the “positive momentum” toward affordable housing development, fare-free transportation and “good government” through thoughtful decision-making. Harmsen was first elected to the council after running unopposed in 2021.
He told the Press-Citizen that being selected and trusted for another term was “pretty profound.” Alongside many of the long-term battles, including affordable housing, transit and the climate, Harmsen said the current political climate on the state and federal level was on his mind.
“Meeting those challenges, whatever they are, and taking that experience, those values, making those decisions, and trying to make the best decisions possible for our community,” Harmsen said.
Harmsen also thanked his opponent and all candidates who vied for the council, saying that he hoped these campaigns would galvanize further civic participation across the community.
“We’re going to need that because none of us can do this alone, but together, we can get through this and we can end up better off than when we started,” he said.
Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Incumbents sweep Iowa City City Council race as Teague, Alter and Harmsen retain their seats
Reporting by Ryan Hansen, Iowa City Press-Citizen / Iowa City Press-Citizen
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
