The 1936 Iowa State Senate elections took place as part of the biennial 1936 United States elections. Iowa voters elected state senators in 32 of the state senate's 50 districts. State senators serve four-year terms in the Iowa State Senate.
A statewide map of the 50 state Senate districts in the 1936 elections is provided by the Iowa General Assemblyhere.
The primary election on June 1, 1936 determined which candidates appeared on the November 3, 1936 general election ballot.[1][2]
Following the previous election, Democrats had control of the Iowa state Senate with 28 seats to Republicans' 22 seats. Due to some vacancies and special elections, by election day 1936, Democrats held 26 seats to Republicans' 24.[a]
To claim control of the chamber from Democrats, the Republicans needed to net 2 Senate seats.
Republicans gained control of the Iowa State Senate following the 1936 general election with the balance of power shifting to Republicans holding 28 seats and Democrats having 22 seats (a net gain of 4 seats for Republicans).
Summary of Results
Note: The 18 holdover Senators not up for re-election are not listed on this table.[3]
Note: If a district does not list a primary, then that district did not have a competitive primary (i.e., there may have only been one candidate file for that district).[5]
^ abcDuring the 46th General Assembly of the Iowa State Senate (Jan. 1935 through Jan. 1937), there were numerous vacancies and special elections. In district 3, Democratic Senator John K. Valentine was succeeded by Democrat Hugh Guernsey following a special election (a hold of the district for Democrats). In district 5, Democratic Senator Frank M. Stevens was succeeded by Republican Howard W. Edwards following a special election (a gain of the district for Republicans). In district 14, Democratic Senator Louis Tuttle Shangle was succeeded by Democrat Albert Earl Augustine following a special election (a hold of the district for Democrats). In district 18, Democratic Senator Charles E. Malone was succeeded by Republican Frank Pelzer following a special election (a gain of the district for Republicans). In district 28, Democratic Senator Chris Reese was succeeded by Republican Benjamin Chase Whitehill following a special election (a gain of the district for Republicans). In district 30, Republican Senator George A. Wilson was succeeded by Democrat James J. Gillespie (a gain of the district for Democrats). In district 37, Republican Senator Irving H. Knudson was succeeded by Republican George Raymond Hill following a special election (a hold of the district for Republicans). Given these changes, by election day in 1936 Democrats had seen their seats fall from 28 to 26 and Republicans had seen their seats rise from 22 to 24 since the start of the 46th General Assembly.