Government : Who and What is on the Back of the Ballot

Justice Dana Oxley

Justice Matt McDermott

Judge Gina Badding

Judge Lars Anderson

Judge Christopher Bruns

Judge Valerie Clay

Judge Chad Kepros

Judge Justin Lightfoot

Judge Kevin McKeever

Judge Sean W. McPartland

Ian Thornhill

Judge Carrie K. Bryner

Judge Jason A. Burns

Judge Heidi A. Carmer

Judge Paul Ahlers

UPDATED: More info has been added to the information about the Judges.

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Every year my phone rings at election time. "Do you know anything about..."

So BEFORE election day, I thought I'd do some research.

On the front of the ballot you have all the federal, state and county candidates. This would be all of the yard signs we've seen. I think we all know about them, and if we don't, well, it's probably not a good idea to vote anyway.

On the back of the ballot there is more. Let's begin.

Under Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioner, you can only vote for two and there are only two names:

Steven Thompson and Cory Cronbaugh

Agricultural Extension Council, you can only vote for five. The candidates are:

Allison Hicks, Katie Sackett-Stadheim, Amy Boddicker, Brian McNulty, Wayne Shannon, Dawn Edler, Scott Rathje

An amendment to the State's Constitution is on the ballot as well. Iowa is one of only six states that do not recognize Second Amendment rights in their constitutions. The proposed amendment reads as follows:

Shall the following amendment to the Constitution be adopted?

1

Summary: Provides that the right of the people of Iowa to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. The sovereign state of Iowa affirms and recognizes the right to keep and bear arms as a fundamental right. Any and all restrictions of this right shall be subject to strict scrutiny.

Full Text:

Article I of the Constitution of the State of Iowa is amended by adding the following new section: Right to keep and bear arms. Sec. 1A. The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. The sovereign state of Iowa affirms and recognizes this right to be a fundamental individual right. Any and all restrictions of this right shall be subject to strict scrutiny.

This is a yes or no vote.

Before I lose most of you, a link to find the ballot that you will use in voting can be found HERE.

There is always one category that I know nothing about, ever, and that's the Judges. You know the most important people in the country are voted on by people who know absolutely nothing about them.

I thought THIS year I'll do some digging to see what I can find out about the elusive people that we're supposed to make an educated vote on. I found brief profiles on each one of them via the Iowa Courts. This will give you a launching point to some googling of your own to see what you can find so that you can hopefully make a better-informed decision on election day.

All voting on the Judges is a simple yes or no. Photos of the Judges can be seen in the photo section above.

Judges who appear on the Ballot include the following:

Supreme Court Justice

Justice Dana Oxley

Justice Oxley, Swisher, was appointed to the Supreme Court in January 2020. Born in Neosho, Missouri she grew up in Greenfield, Iowa. She received her undergraduate degree in accounting from the University of Northern Iowa in 1990 and received her J.D. from the University of Iowa in 1998, graduating Order of the Coif. Following law school, Justice Oxley served as a one-year term clerk for the Honorable David R. Hansen on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals and later returned to serve as a career law clerk for Judge Hansen until 2011. Prior to being appointed to the Supreme Court, Justice Oxley practiced with Shuttleworth & Ingersoll PLC in Cedar Rapids.

Justice Oxley teaches as an adjunct professor at the University of Iowa College of Law. She is a member of the Iowa Bar Association and the Linn County Bar Association.

Justice Oxley is married and has two children. Her current term expires December 31, 2022.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: None

Court Opinions:

* Delivered majority opinion in Case No. 20-0804 that reversed 2019 district 5C court order halting Iowa law (HF766) that added funding conditions prohibiting abortion providers from participating in two federally funded educational grant programs directed at reducing teenage pregnancy and promoting abstinence. Majority opinion upheld the State's interest in selecting the messenger for its programs.

* Joined majority opinion in Case No. 21-0856 that upheld 24-hour waiting period prior to an abortion (HF594) and that overturned previous 2018 court opinion in Case No. 17-1579 that held for the first time that there is a fundamental right to an abortion under the Iowa Constitution. In overturning the 2018 opinion, the majority found that abortion rights were not rooted at all in our state's history and tradition; the deep roots that exist are, in fact, of common law and statutory prohibition in favor of protecting all life.

Justice Matt McDermott

Justice McDermott, West Des Moines, was appointed to the Supreme Court in April 2020.

Justice McDermott was born and raised in Carroll, Iowa. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa in 2000 and his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley in 2003, where he served as an editor of the California Law Review. Justice McDermott worked as an attorney in private practice until his appointment. He is a former member of the Iowa State Bar Association's Board of Governors and chair of its Judicial Administration Committee. He is past-president of the Iowa State Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division and received its highest honor, the Award of Merit, in 2013. Justice McDermott previously served on the United Way of Central Iowa's Chair's Cabinet and co-chaired its Tocqueville Society campaign. He received the United Way of Central Iowa's "Volunteer of the Year" award in 2017. Justice McDermott also previously served on the board of directors and as board president for Iowa Legal Aid, the Iowa Lottery Authority, Polk County Homeless Continuum of Care Board, and Central Iowa Shelter & Services. He currently serves as chair of the Iowa Access to Justice Commission.

Justice McDermott is married and has three children. His current term expires December 31, 2022.

Political Party: Democrat

Primary Election History: 2008 (R), 2010 (R), 2012 (R), 2014 (R), 2016 (R), 2018 (D) Court Opinion(s):

* Joined majority opinion in Case No. 20-0804 that reversed 2019 district 5C court order halting Iowa law (HF766) that added funding conditions prohibiting abortion providers from participating in two federally funded educational grant programs directed at reducing teenage pregnancy and promoting abstinence. Majority opinion upheld the State's interest in selecting the messenger for its programs.

* Joined majority opinion in Case No. 21-0856 as to parts II, III, and IV.A-B that upheld 24-hour waiting period prior to an abortion (HF594) and that overturned previous 2018 court opinion in Case No. 17-1579 that held for the first time that there is a fundamental right to an abortion under the Iowa Constitution. Filed an opinion concurring in part and dissent from those parts of the opinion ordering the application of an undue burden standard.

Court of Appeals Judge

Gina Badding

Judge Badding, Carroll, was appointed to the Iowa Court of Appeals in July 2021. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Religion with Honors from the University of Iowa in 2001, and her J.D. with Distinction from the University of Iowa in 2004. Her past work experience includes being an associate attorney and partner in private law, as well as a staff attorney for the Iowa Court of Appeals. She was appointed a district court judge in April 2019. She is a member of the Iowa State and Carroll County Bar Associations.

Political Party: Republican

Primary Election History: Non

Paul Ahlers

Judge Ahlers, Fort Dodge, was appointed to the Iowa Court of Appeals in 2019. He was appointed to the district associate bench in 2011. He graduated from Iowa State University with a finance degree in 1991 and from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1994. From 1994 to 2008 Judge Ahlers practiced in a private law firm. From 2008 to 2011, he served as claim counsel in the bond and financial products claim group for the Travelers Companies. Judge Ahlers is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: None

District 6 Court Judge

Lars Anderson

Judge Anderson, Iowa City, was appointed to the bench in July 2014. He earned his bachelor's degree from Luther College in 1992 and his law degree, with distinction, from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1995. Prior to being appointed to the bench, he was in private practice in Iowa City from 1995-2014 and was an adjunct professor at the University of Iowa College of Law in 2014. Judge Anderson served as an alternate Judicial Hospitalization Referee for Johnson County from 1997 to 2001 and as a Judicial Hospitalization Referee from 2003 to 2014. Judge Anderson is a member of the Johnson County Bar Association, Iowa State Bar Association, and Dean Mason Ladd American Inn of Court.

Political Party: Democrat

Primary Election History: None

Christopher Bruns
Judge Bruns, Cedar Rapids, was appointed to the bench on December 17, 2014. He earned his bachelor's degree in History and Political Science from Drake University in 1988 and his law degree from Drake Law School in 1991, Order of the Coif. After graduation from law school, Judge Bruns was in private practice with Cedar Rapids law firms until his appointment to the bench. He is a Fellow in the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers and a member of the Linn County Bar Association. He is married and has one child.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: None

Valerie Clay

Judge Clay of Linn County was appointed to the bench on September 22, 2022. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology from the University of Iowa in 1997. She then earned her Juris Doctorate at the University Of Maryland Law School in 2006. After graduation from law school, Judge Clay was an Associate at Norton Law Firm in Lowden, Iowa from 2007-2008. From 2008-2015 Judge Clay served as Assistant Attorney General with the Linn County Child Support Recovery Unit in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. In 2015 Judge Clay became an Assistant Linn County Attorney. She began as a Criminal Prosecutor, and then transferred to the Juvenile Division in 2018, where she remained until her appointment to the District Court bench. Judge Clay is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association; Iowa Judges Association; Linn County Bar Association; Sixth Judicial District Mediation Advisory Committee; and Jones County Magistrate Nominating Commission. She is also a former member of the Jones County Bar Association. Judge Clay is married with two children.

Political Party: Democrat

Primary Election History: 2016 (D), 2018 (D)

Chad Kepros

Judge Kepros, North Liberty, was appointed to the district court bench in February 2015. He earned his bachelor's degree from Coe College in 1993 and his law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1996, with high honors. He worked as a private attorney and mediator in Iowa City beginning in 1996 and also served as a Johnson County Magistrate from June 2013 until his appointment to the bench. He is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association (Past Chair of the Family & Juvenile Law Section) and Johnson County Bar Association and previously served as Sixth District Representative in the Iowa Association of Magistrate Judges. Judge Kepros also serves on the Iowa Supreme Court Family Law Case Processing Reform Task Force and the Iowa Supreme Court Child Support Guidelines Review Committee.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: 2014 (Democrat)

Justin Lightfoot

Judge Lightfoot, Cedar Rapids, was appointed to the bench on March 25, 2021. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Criminal Justice Studies from Iowa State University in 2003, and his Juris Doctor with high distinction, Order of the Coif, from the University of Iowa College of Law in 2006. After graduation from law school, Judge Lightfoot served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Carol E. Jackson in the Eastern District of Missouri for four years. Since clerking, he has served as ... Assistant United States Attorney from 2010-2021, and was Chief of the Criminal Division from 2018-2021. Judge Lightfoot is a member of the Linn County Bar Association (Board of Governors 2018-2021); the Iowa State Bar Association, Dean Mason Ladd Inn of Court; and has also served as the Eighth Circuit Representative on the Department of Justice's Criminal Chiefs' working group. District Court Judge.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: None

Kevin McKeever

Judge McKeever, Iowa City, was appointed to the bench on September 30, 2015. He earned his bachelor's degree from Northwestern University in 1991 and his law degree from the University of Iowa in 2001. Prior to being appointed to the bench, he was an Officer with the United States Navy (1991-1998), an Assistant Ramsey County Attorney (2001-2007), a Staff Attorney with ACT Inc. (2007-2011, and an Assistant Muscatine County Attorney (2011-September 2015). Judge McKeever serves as a board member of the African American Museum of Iowa, and he enjoys bicycle riding and reading books about history.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: 2014 (Democrat)

Sean McPartland

Judge Sean W. McPartland is a district court judge in the Sixth Judicial District of Iowa, based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Judge McPartland was appointed to the district court bench in 2008 after practicing in general civil litigation with law firms in Kansas City, Missouri (1984-1989) and in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (1989-2008). Judge McPartland received his undergraduate degree from the University of Iowa in 1981, with distinction, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa and Kappa Tau Alpha honor societies. Judge McPartland received his law degree in 1984, with distinction, from the University of Iowa College of Law.

After his appointment to the bench, Judge McPartland served on the Iowa Civil Justice Task Force Steering Committee from 2009-2012 and contributed to the 2021 report of the Task Force. Judge McPartland also served as a member of the Advisory Committee Concerning Certain Civil Justice Reform Task Force Recommendations beginning in 2012, with the work of the Committee leading to the adoption of 2015 amendments to the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure related to areas including required initial disclosures, discovery, and expedited civil actions. Judge McPartland was appointed in 2017 to serve as a judge on the Iowa Business Specialty Court and served in that capacity until 2020. Judge McPartland also has served regularly since 2012 as a faculty member in orientation programs for new judges presented by the Iowa Judicial Branch.

Political Party: Democrat

Primary Election History: 2010 (D), 2014 (D), 2016 (D), 2018 (D), 2020 (D), 2022 (D)

Ian Thornhill

Judge Thornhill, Cedar Rapids, was appointed to the district court bench on September 25, 2009, and began his career as a district judge on October 23, 2009. He received his B.B.A., from The University of Iowa in 1989. In 1991 he received his M.B.A. from The University of Iowa, and in 1998 received his J.D. from The University of Iowa with High Distinction. Previous Professional Experiences have included: Assistant United States Attorney (August 2002 to October 2009), United States Navy Reserve Attorney (August 2002 to Present) and United States Navy Active Duty Attorney (October 1998 to August 2002). From November 2007 to May 2008, Judge Thornhill was recalled to active duty and deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Judge Thornhill is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association, the Linn County Bar Association, and the Iowa Judges Association.

Political Party: Republican

Primary Election History: 2010 (R), 2012 (R), 2014 (R), 2016 (R), 2018 (R), 2020 (R), 2022 (R)

District 6 Associate Judge

Carrie K. Bryner

Judge Bryner, Cedar Rapids, was appointed to the bench on July 24, 2020. She earned her B.A. in Business Administration from Hillsdale College in 1991, and her law degree from the University of Toledo, College of Law, in 1997. After graduation from law school, she worked as an Assistant Cedar Rapids City Attorney from 1998-99 prosecuting simple misdemeanors and handling municipal infractions and small claims cases. From 1999-2003, Judge Bryner was an Assistant Linn County Attorney, prosecuting simple, serious, and aggravated misdemeanors. Beginning in 2003 to her appointment to the bench, she was a sole practitioner focusing on juvenile court, representing parents and children in Child in Need of Assistance cases. She was also a certified mediator, mediating dissolution, custody, and contempt cases. Additionally, on January 2, 2015, until her appointment as a District Associate Judge, she served as a part-time Magistrate in Linn County, hearing simple misdemeanor and small claims cases. She is married and has three children.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: None

Jason A. Burns

Judge Burns, Iowa City, was appointed to the bench on August 18, 2015. He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a bachelor's degree in Justice Systems from Truman State University in 1999 and his Juris Doctorate degree, with distinction, from the University of Iowa in 2002. He was an Assistant Linn County Attorney from 2002 until his appointment to the bench. Judge Burns is a member of several local bar associations. He is married and has one child.

Political Party: No Party

Primary Election History: 2012 (Democrat), 2014 (D), 2018 (D)

Heidi A. Carmer

Judge Carmer was appointed to the bench in August 2021. She graduated from Cornell College in 1998 and received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Iowa College of Law in 2002. Prior to her appointment, she worked as Assistant Linn County Attorney from August 2003 to July 2021.

Political Party: Democrat

Primary Election History: 2020 (D)