116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Special election is Tuesday for Iowa House District 78
Republican Bernie Hayes faces Democrat Angel Ramirez in largely southeast Cedar Rapids legislative district
Apr. 28, 2025 11:45 am
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CEDAR RAPIDS — It’s Election Day on Tuesday for voters in southeast Cedar Rapids in need of a new representative at the Iowa Statehouse.
Republican Bernie Hayes is running against Democrat Angel Ramirez in the special election to represent House District 78, which includes a section of northeast Cedar Rapids and a broad swath of southeast Cedar Rapids, in the Iowa Legislature.
The winning candidate will replace former Democratic lawmaker Sami Scheetz, who resigned April 1 and was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Linn County Board of Supervisors. There is roughly a year and a half left in the unexpired term he fills.
Hayes, a retired systems engineer, has run on a platform of traditional family values and conservative fiscal policy. Nonprofit leader Ramirez has pledged to push for increased funding for public education and broader protections for working families and marginalized communities.
Polls in the district are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, and all absentee ballots must be returned to the Linn County Auditor’s Office by the time polls close. To confirm your in-person polling location, visit LinnCountyElections.org/lookup.
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