Campbell picked as GOP nominee for Iowa Senate District 30

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

Doug Campbell of Mason City was selected as the Republican nominee for Iowa Senate District 30 at a special party nominating convention held Monday evening in Clear Lake.

Campbell defeated M.J. Rodriguez, also of Mason City, who announced his candidacy for the nomination during the convention.

Campbell, a retired pharmacist, received 30 out of the 44 votes cast by delegates, winning 68%.

The convention was called after incumbent Sen. Waylon Brown, who had won the Republican nomination over Campbell in the party’s primary election in June, surprised the party by announcing he was resigning his Senate seat effective July 10.

Brown, who had first been elected in 2016, later announced that he had accepted a role as a policy advisor at a renewable energy non-profit.

Campbell announced quickly after Brown’s resignation that he would again seek the nomination. He will face Democrat Richard Lorence, Mason City, in the general election Nov. 5.

Iowa Senate District 30 includes all of Cerro Gordo, Worth and Mitchell counties, and the two townships of Rockford and Rock Grove in northeastern Floyd County. Those townships include the cities of Rockford and Nora Springs.

“My team and I worked incredibly hard to make this happen,” Campbell said of the nomination. “It feels great to see all of our hard work pay off. We are prepared to hit the ground running and win the votes of District 30 this November.”