The Iowa Senate is the

upper house An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...

of the

Iowa General Assembly The Iowa General Assembly is the legislative branch of the state government of Iowa. Like the federal United States Congress, the General Assembly is a bicameral body, composed of the upper house Iowa Senate and the lower Iowa House of ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, . Each Senate district is composed of two House districts. The Senate meets at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines. Unlike the lower house, the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

, Senators serve four-year terms, with no term limits. Terms are staggered so that half the Senate is up for reelection every two years.

Leadership

The President of the Senate presides over the body, whose powers include referring bills to committee, recognizing members during debate, and making procedural rulings. Unlike the more powerful Speaker of the

, the Senate President cannot appoint committee chairmanships or shuffle committee memberships. The Lieutenant Governor of Iowa was the presiding officer of the Senate until 1988, when an amendment to the Constitution of Iowa was passed in a referendum (effective from 1991). The other partisan Senate leadership positions, such as the Majority and Minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses to head their parties in the chamber. The President of the Senate is

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Jake Chapman of the 10th District. The Majority Leader is Republican

Jack Whitver Jack Whitver (born September 4, 1980) is an American businessman and politician, who is currently the Iowa State Senator for the Iowa Senate, District 23, 23rd District. Since 2018 he has served as Iowa Senate, Senate Majority Leader. Whitver play ...

of the 19th District. The Minority Leader is Democrat Zach Wahls of the 37th District.

Committee leadership

*All chairs and vice chairs are members of the Republican Party of Iowa. All ranking members are members of the Democratic Party of Iowa.

Current composition

Past notable members

* Samuel J. Kirkwood, two-time governor of Iowa (1860–64, 1876–77); two time U.S. senator (1866–67), (1877–81); U.S. secretary of the interior (1881–82) * George G. Wright, U.S. senator from 1871 to 1877 * Tom Vilsack, Incumbent United States secretary of agriculture since 2021 and from 2009 to 2017, former governor of Iowa from 1999 to 2007, and briefly Democratic candidate for

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

in 2008 *

George A. Wilson George Allison Wilson (April 1, 1884 – September 8, 1953) was an American politician and lawyer. He was a United States Senate, United States Senator and List of Governors of Iowa, 28th Governor of Iowa. Personal background Born on a farm near ...

, governor of Iowa from 1939 to 1943 * Patty Judge, former lieutenant governor of Iowa (2007–2011), former

Iowa secretary of agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture of Iowa is an elected position in government of the U.S. state of Iowa that was created in 1923 by the extra session of the 40th General Assembly. The Secretary of Agriculture heads the Iowa Department of Agriculture ...

(1999–2007) * Steve King, former U.S. representative for

Iowa's 4th congressional district Iowa's 4th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers its northwestern part, bordering the states of Minnesota, South Dakota, and Nebraska, and the Missouri River. The district includes Sioux ...

(2003–2021) *

Joni Ernst Joni Kay Ernst (née Culver; born July 1, 1970) is an American former military officer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Iowa since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served in the Iowa State Se ...

, Incumbent U.S. senator, since 2015 *

Kim Reynolds Kimberly Kay Reynolds (née Strawn; born August 4, 1959) is an American politician serving as the 43rd governor of Iowa since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Reynolds served as the 46th lieutenant governor of Iowa from 2011 to 2017. B ...

, Incumbent governor of Iowa since 2017, former lieutenant governor of Iowa (2011–2017) *

Randy Feenstra Randall Lee Feenstra (born January 14, 1969) is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. representative for Iowa's 4th congressional district. The district covers much of the northwestern quadrant of the state, including Sioux ...

, Incumbent U.S. representative for

since 2021 *

Mariannette Miller-Meeks Mariannette Jane Miller-Meeks (born September 6, 1955) is an American physician and politician serving as the U.S. representative from Iowa's 2nd congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Miller-Meeks served as Iowa s ...

, U.S. representative for

Iowa's 2nd congressional district Iowa's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers most of its southeastern part. It includes Davenport, Iowa City, Muscatine, Clinton, Burlington, Ottumwa, Fort Madison, Oskaloosa, Bette ...

since 2021 and Republican nominee for

in 2008, 2010, and 2014

Past composition of the Senate

References

External links

Iowa Legislature
''official government website'' *
Iowa Senate DemocratsIowa Senate RepublicansCurrent Iowa Senators
{{Authority control 1846 establishments in Iowa State upper houses in the United States *