Meet the candidates: Two Republicans vie for open Iowa House seat

Two Republicans will face off next month in a race to fill an Eastern Iowa Statehouse seat being vacated by a first-term incumbent.

Williamsburg Mayor Adam Grier and Judd Lawler of Oxford will face off in a primary for Iowa House District 91, which covers Iowa County and western and northern Johnson County. Only Republican voters in the district can vote in this primary.

Democrat Jay Gorsh of Williamsburg also has filed to run for the seat, facing the winner of the GOP primary this fall.

Early voting in Iowa’s June 4 primary elections starts today.

Republican incumbent Rep. Brad Sherman, a pastor from Williamsburg, is not seeking re-election due to the sudden and unexpected death of his daughter early last June. Sherman recruited Lawler to run for the seat and has endorsed his campaign.

Lawler, a Johnson County native and former federal prosecutor in New York, moved back to Iowa 18 years ago and is a stay-at-home father.

As a lawyer and former prosecutor, he said he brings legal expertise to ensure bills being drafted are good policy and to serve as a “watchdog” against waste, fraud and inefficiency in spending.

Grier was elected mayor of Williamsburg in 2021 and previously served on the City Council. He said he is running to maintain home rule, which empowers municipalities, counties and school boards to govern themselves as much as possible. He said he also supports Gov. Kim Reynolds’ initiatives on tax reform, addressing workforce shortages and educational freedom.

Grier enlisted and served in the Marine Corps during Desert Storm until 1999 and worked in law enforcement in Cedar Rapids.

Adam Grier

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Age: 59

Home: Williamsburg

Occupation: Human resources risk management coordinator for Johnson County

Party: Republican

Political experience: Williamsburg mayor (appointed in March 2021 and elected in November 2021; reelected in 2023); served on City Council from 2008 to 2021

Highest level of education: Master’s degree is business administration from Mount Mercy University

Grier said he’s worried by recent property tax breaks and reforms passed by lawmakers that could force cuts to local government services like fire protection, garbage pickup and street maintenance.

“I am greatly appreciative of and understand the desire to cut taxes,” he said. “We shouldn’t ask for any more funds than necessary, but there comes to a point where the tax cut from Des Moines creates a greater burden on local governments to provide the same level of service with less funds.”

State lawmakers last year passed a law that creates new limits on city and county property tax rates, repeals some taxes and creates new property tax breaks for seniors and veterans.

As costs inevitably increase — and given recent inflation — the constrained ability to raise new revenue means cities and counties will be hamstrung to address emerging community needs and respond to unforeseen emergencies.

“It’s coming to a point where we’re going to have to make some tough decisions and tough conversations in the coming years,” he said.

Grier said he’s also a “strong advocate” to protecting unborn life and “prohibiting as many abortions as possible.” He said he supports a blocked Iowa law banning abortions early in pregnancy, and would be in favor of a total ban on abortion.

“Whenever possible, I would like to protect life of the unborn child. I would be open to very unique situations to protect the life of the unborn child and the mother,” he said.

Grier said he also supports legislation proposed by Reynolds this year that would define terms like “man,” “woman,” “male” and “female” to align with a person’s sex assigned at birth. The bill would have required government accommodations to be provided to a person based on their sex assigned at birth rather than gender identity. The bill advanced out of an Iowa House committee, but did not pass either legislative chamber.

Grier said he has developed positive working relationships with elected officials in Iowa County and Johnson County, and has a good understanding of the needs of both.

“With my experience in local government and law enforcement, I can make sound decisions for our district,” he said.

Judd Lawler

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Age: 51

Home: Rural Oxford

Occupation: Father

Party: Republican

Political experience: None

Highest level of education: Awarded a Juris Doctor and graduated cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center.

Lawler, who supported and campaigned for Sherman, said he would continue Sherman’s work of “strengthening families and protecting individual liberty,” particularly on issues involving religious freedom, gun rights and property rights.

Regarding the latter, Lawler said he supports legislation restricting eminent domain use for carbon capture pipelines in the state.

Two companies — Summit Carbon Solutions and Wolf Carbon Solutions — have proposed projects that will capture CO2 emitted in ethanol production and sequester it deep underground, benefiting from lucrative federal tax credits and low-carbon fuel markets.

Wolf Carbon Solutions, whose pipeline route would include Linn County, has said it does not plan to use eminent domain.

A portion of landowners along Summit pipeline’s route have pushed lawmakers to prevent the involuntary taking of land — with compensation — for construction.

“Voters in my district have been very passionate about this issue,” Lawler said. “If the government can forcibly take your property rights and give them to another private party, the idea that we have ‘property rights’ is meaningless. Eminent domain must only be used for something that is inarguably for public use. Otherwise, only the rich and powerful have property rights.”

Lawler said he’s held 15 meetings in the district to hear from voters.

“And having drafted legislation in the past, I think I have the skills necessary to write laws that will address the issues we face, rather than laws that sound good but are easy to evade,” he said.

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com