//Run for office · Iowa

How to run for local office in Iowa

Iowa puts every city council and school board race on one November ballot in odd years, charges no filing fee, and sells a statewide voter file with updates for $1,500 a year (or $10 for a small town).

Facts checked against official sources · September 9, 2026

Iowa consolidates its local calendar. Regular city and school elections both fall on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of odd-numbered years (Iowa Code 376.1, 277.1), so the next one is November 2, 2027, and the county auditor runs both on one ballot. City and school candidates are nominated by petition and affidavit, filed 71 to 47 days before the election, with no filing fee anywhere in the state. County offices are partisan and run on the even-year primary and general ballot instead.

Campaign finance is centralized. The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board administers chapter 68A for every candidate down to school board; you register a committee electronically once you raise or spend more than $1,000 in a year, and there are no contribution limits for individuals or PACs, though corporations and banks may not give. The voter file is cheap and current: the Secretary of State or your county auditor sells lists priced by record count, and both sell absentee-request lists with updates that serve as your ballot-chase feed. Iowa also allows registration at the polls.

Election authority: Iowa Secretary of State, Elections Division (State Commissioner of Elections and State Registrar of Voters)
Voter file: Available for political and election purposes · $10 minimum for a list of 20,000 records or fewer, plus $0.50 per 1,000 records above 20,000, delivered by email; CD-ROM adds $2 and paper is $0.10 per page. Subscriptions with updates: statewide voter list $1,500 per year; statewide absentee list $450 per year; congressional-district absentee list $125; Iowa House or Senate district absentee list $50; countywide absentee list $40 (Secretary of State pricing, checked 2026-09-09). Counties may charge different prices for lists they prepare.
Campaign finance: IECDB Web Reporting System (Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board)
How voters vote: In person, with no-excuse mail voting
Registration deadline: Pre-registration closes at 5:00 p.m. 15 days before each election (48A.9); mailed forms count if postmarked by that day. After that, register in person at the auditor's office while voting absentee, or at your polling place on election day, with proof of identity and residence or the oath of a registered voter in the precinct (48A.7A).
Local offices: City and school board elections are nonpartisan: the affidavit's party line is left blank, and there is no primary unless the city has adopted primary provisions, in which case the primary is four weeks before the regular election (376.3, 376.7). County supervisors and other county officers are partisan, nominated at the June primary in even years.

Who runs elections in Iowa

Iowa Secretary of State, Elections Division (State Commissioner of Elections and State Registrar of Voters) Publishes the three-year election calendar with exact filing periods and registration deadlines, the city and school candidate guides, nomination forms, and the statewide voter registration list. Statewide and congressional-district voter lists come only from this office. Local candidates file candidacy papers locally and campaign finance reports with the Ethics Board, so the Secretary of State is mostly your data and calendar source.

The county auditor is the county commissioner of elections in each county (Iowa Code 47.2): the auditor registers voters, issues and receives absentee ballots, runs in-person absentee voting at the courthouse, and conducts every city, school, and special election in the county. For a city or school district that crosses county lines, the auditor of the county with the greatest taxable base is the 'controlling commissioner' who receives nomination papers and certifies candidates to the other counties. City clerks and school board secretaries receive nomination papers for their offices and deliver them to the auditor by noon the day after filing closes (376.4, 277.4).

Getting the Iowa voter file

The voter file is the list of every registered voter, with the fields a campaign needs to target: address, party where the state records it, and vote history. In Iowa it comes from Iowa Secretary of State (State Registrar of Voters), or any county auditor for lists within the county.

Access: Available for political and election purposes
Cost: $10 minimum for a list of 20,000 records or fewer, plus $0.50 per 1,000 records above 20,000, delivered by email; CD-ROM adds $2 and paper is $0.10 per page. Subscriptions with updates: statewide voter list $1,500 per year; statewide absentee list $450 per year; congressional-district absentee list $125; Iowa House or Senate district absentee list $50; countywide absentee list $40 (Secretary of State pricing, checked 2026-09-09). Counties may charge different prices for lists they prepare.
Format: Excel or CSV by email (paper and CD-ROM available). You pick one option per column when ordering: jurisdiction, participation history, party, voter status, and format.
Vote history: Included
Phone numbers: Not confirmed
Updated: A list is prepared within 14 days of the request and must reflect all voter activity reported to any auditor 28 or more days before it was prepared. Subscribers get updates at least biweekly, and after the close of registration before an election if they asked for that when they bought. Election participation is posted within 60 days after each election (48A.38).

Who can get it: Any person may request a list on payment of the cost of preparation (Iowa Code 48A.38), but the information may be used only to request a registrant's vote, for a genuine political purpose, for bona fide political research, or for an official purpose by an elected official. Statewide and congressional-district lists must come from the Secretary of State; a county auditor can produce lists for any district that includes part of the county.

Permitted use: Political and election purposes only. Using the list for any commercial purpose is a serious misdemeanor. The registrar and each auditor keep a public log of the name, address, and phone number of everyone who receives a list (48A.38, subd. 3).

County option: Your county auditor sells the same data for the county, the city, the school district, or any legislative district inside the county, at prices the county sets. For a single-county city or school race the auditor is usually the faster and cheaper source, and the auditor can add the absentee request list as a recurring update.

Ordering choices from the Secretary of State: jurisdiction (statewide, U.S. Senate or congressional district, county, city, school district, state Senate or House district); election participation history (last five elections of every type, specific elections you name, or contact information only); party (Republican, Democrat, other, or all); status (active only, or active plus inactive and pending); and format.
Social Security numbers, driver's license numbers, and non-operator ID numbers are stripped from every list. Inactive and pending voters are left out unless you ask for them (48A.38; 48A.37).
The registrar may delay lists requested within seven days of the close of registration for a scheduled election if preparing them would slow election setup, and orders placed just before a major election can be delayed.
An individual voter profile report costs $5. Credit card payments are taken by phone once the total is known; checks go to the Iowa Secretary of State.

Whatever file you get, Culper imports it as a CSV and maps the columns for you. See how to read a voter file for what the fields mean.

Filing to run for local office in Iowa

You get on the ballot by petition plus a notarized affidavit of candidacy, filed during a window that closes 47 days before the election at 5:00 p.m. There are no filing fees in Iowa for any office. City and school candidates run without party labels; county candidates run in party primaries in even years.

File with: City offices: the county auditor (commissioner of elections) for the city, or the city clerk if the auditor has designated the clerk to receive papers; ask the auditor which applies to your city (376.4). School board: the secretary of the school board, or a full-time district employee the secretary designates (277.4). County offices: the county auditor, during the even-year window before the June primary.
Filing fee: None. 'There are no filing fees in Iowa' (Secretary of State city and school candidate guides, revised August 2025; 376.4; 277.4).
Petition: City: signatures of eligible electors equal to at least 2 percent of those who voted for the same office at the last regular city election, and never fewer than 10 (376.4); cities nominating under chapter 45 use population tiers instead (at least 75 signatures in cities of 25,000 or more, 50 for 7,500 to 24,999, 25 for 2,500 to 7,499, 10 below 2,500, per the Secretary of State guide). Ward candidates need ward residents. School board: the greater of 10 signatures or 1 percent of the registered voters of the district (or director district), but never more than 50 (277.4). A voter may sign petitions for more than one candidate for the same office.
Partisan?: City and school board elections are nonpartisan: the affidavit's party line is left blank, and there is no primary unless the city has adopted primary provisions, in which case the primary is four weeks before the regular election (376.3, 376.7). County supervisors and other county officers are partisan, nominated at the June primary in even years.

Filing window: Not more than 71 days nor less than 47 days before the election, closing at 5:00 p.m., for both city (376.4) and school board (277.4) offices. Cities that may hold a primary use 85 to 68 days before the regular city election instead. The Secretary of State's three-year calendar publishes the exact dates. County and legislative candidates file in a window in late winter of even years ahead of the June primary.

Key Iowa dates
What	When	Note
Filing period opens, 2027 regular city and school elections	August 23, 2027	71 days before 2027-11-02 (376.4; 277.4; Secretary of State three-year calendar).
Filing deadline, 2027 regular city and school elections	September 16, 2027	47th day before election day; papers must be in by 5:00 p.m. No filing fee.
Filing period opens, 2027 cities with primary election provisions	August 9, 2027	85 to 68 days before the regular city election (376.4); the window closes August 26, 2027 and the primary is October 5, 2027.
Filing deadline, 2027 cities with primary election provisions	August 26, 2027	68th day before the regular city election, 5:00 p.m.
City primary election, 2027	October 5, 2027	Tuesday four weeks before the regular city election, only in cities that need one (376.7). Pre-registration deadline for it is September 20, 2027.
In-person absentee voting begins, 2027 city and school elections	October 13, 2027	No more than 20 days before the election at the county auditor's office (53.10). Mailed ballots go out as requests come in.
Pre-registration and mail absentee request deadline, 2027	October 18, 2027	5:00 p.m., 15 days before the election, for both registration (48A.9) and a written request for a mailed absentee ballot (53.2). Registration at the polls remains available.
Regular city and school election, 2027	November 2, 2027	First Tuesday after the first Monday in November of an odd year (376.1; 277.1). Absentee ballots must reach the auditor by 8:00 p.m.
City runoff election, 2027	November 30, 2027	Four weeks after the regular election, in cities that chose runoff instead of primary provisions (376.9). Pre-registration deadline November 15, 2027.
County office filing, 2028 primary	Varies	Nomination papers for partisan county offices are filed with the county auditor in a window that closes in March of even years; in 2026 it ran March 2 to March 20 for the June 2 primary (Secretary of State calendar).

The Secretary of State's three-year calendar already lists 2027 dates: city primary October 5 (filing August 9 to 26), regular city and school election November 2 (filing August 23 to September 16, registration deadline October 18), and city runoff November 30 (registration deadline November 15).
Nomination papers are public records once filed, and any voter eligible to vote for the office may object to their sufficiency with the officer who received them (376.4; 44.4).

Campaign finance rules in Iowa

State-level campaign finance in Iowa is overseen by Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board through IECDB Web Reporting System.

Where local candidates file: Every candidate for state or local office in Iowa, city council and school board included, is under chapter 68A and files with the Ethics Board, not with the city clerk or county auditor. You must register a candidate committee by electronically filing a statement of organization (DR-1) within 10 days of raising or spending more than $1,000 in a calendar year, counting your own money (68A.102, subd. 5; 68A.201). Below $1,000 there is nothing to file, though a campaign that wants the short 'paid for by' attribution can file a DR-SFA first. The committee name must include your last name, the treasurer must be an Iowa resident at least 18 (you may be your own treasurer), and the committee needs its own account at an Iowa financial institution unless only you contribute. All statements and reports are filed electronically by 4:30 p.m. on the due date (68A.401).

Contribution limits: Iowa has no contribution limits. Individuals, PACs, and any entity that is not a prohibited contributor may give a local candidate any amount, monetary or in-kind. Corporations, banks, savings associations, credit unions, and insurance companies may not contribute to a candidate at all (68A.503). You must record the name and address of every contributor who gives more than $25. Statewide and legislative candidates may not accept lobbyist or PAC contributions during the legislative session (68A.504).

Reporting: City candidates in an election year: five days before the primary (if the city holds one), five days before the general election, five days before a runoff, and January 19 of the next year. School board and other subdivision candidates: five days before the election and the following January 19. County candidates: May 19, July 19, October 19, and January 19. Every committee files January 19 in non-election years and keeps filing, even with no activity, until it dissolves (68A.402).

Reports itemize contributors over $25, every expenditure with payee and purpose, debts, loans, and campaign property worth $500 or more; contributions from relatives within the third degree must be flagged. Keep bank records and receipts for five years.
A 'paid for by' attribution is required on signs, mailers, websites and social media pages, and any other published campaign material, but not on bumper stickers, buttons, pens, or clothing (68A.405).
Out-of-state and federal committees giving $50 or more to an Iowa committee must file a verified statement of registration with the Board within 15 days (68A.201A).

Limits and thresholds change. Treat the figures here as a starting point and confirm the current schedule with Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board before you accept a check. Our campaign finance basics guide covers the bookkeeping every local candidate needs on day one.

How voting works in Iowa

In person, with no-excuse mail voting. Election-day voting at your precinct with photo ID, plus no-excuse absentee voting by mail or in person at the county auditor's office during the 20 days before the election (53.2; 53.10). Anyone eligible can register at the auditor's office while voting absentee in person or at the polls on election day (48A.7A).

Early voting: In-person absentee voting at the county auditor's office opens no more than 20 days before the election (53.10). For city, school, and special elections the auditor may open it as soon as ballots are ready, but never earlier than 20 days out. You vote the ballot at the office; you cannot take it home.
Mail ballots: Request in writing to your county auditor with your name, date of birth, address, driver's license or voter PIN, and the election; requests may not be received earlier than 70 days before the election and must be received by 5:00 p.m. 15 days before it (53.2). The ballot must be received by the auditor by the time the polls close on election day; you may not drop it at a polling place, though you may surrender it there and vote a regular ballot.
Registration deadline: Pre-registration closes at 5:00 p.m. 15 days before each election (48A.9); mailed forms count if postmarked by that day. After that, register in person at the auditor's office while voting absentee, or at your polling place on election day, with proof of identity and residence or the oath of a registered voter in the precinct (48A.7A).
Same-day registration: Yes

Knowing who has already voted: Absentee request data is sold as a subscription with updates: the Secretary of State's 'absentee list with updates' costs $40 per year for a county, $50 for an Iowa House or Senate district, $125 for a congressional district, and $450 statewide, and county auditors sell their own absentee request lists. Iowa Code 48A.38 requires the registrar to prepare list updates at least biweekly and, if you ask when you buy, after the close of registration before the election. The list identifies voters who have requested an absentee ballot; confirm with your auditor whether the county's export also carries the ballot-returned date. Election-day participation is posted to voter records within 60 days after the election, so buy history for the last two odd-year November elections to build your likely-voter universe.

Local government in Iowa: what you can run for

Counties are governed by boards of supervisors of three or five members (331.201) elected in partisan even-year races, with the county auditor as commissioner of elections (47.2). Cities operate under a mayor-council form by default, a mayor and five council members elected at large unless the city adopts wards, or under council-manager or commission forms (372.4); a few special-charter cities keep partisan elections (376.3). School districts are independent corporations with elected boards (274.1), and community college (merged area) boards are elected on the same school ballot. Townships elect trustees and clerks on the even-year general ballot alongside county hospital trustees and soil and water conservation commissioners.

City council member
Mayor
School board director
Community college trustee
County supervisor
County auditor
County treasurer
County recorder
County sheriff
County attorney
Township trustee
Soil and water conservation commissioner
County hospital trustee
State representative
State senator

When local elections happen: Regular city and school elections: the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of odd-numbered years, on one combined ballot (376.1; 277.1); next is November 2, 2027. City primaries, where a city has adopted them, are four weeks earlier, and runoffs four weeks later (376.7; 376.9). County, township, legislative, and statewide offices are nominated at the June primary and elected at the November general election in even years.

Running your Iowa campaign on Culper

Culper does not license voter data in Iowa today. You upload the Iowa voter file described above as a CSV, and every feature runs on it: search and lists, plain-English queries, texting and email, block walking, and volunteer coordination. Online donation processing is in development; ask about timing on the onboarding call. Your file stays in your campaign's workspace and is never shared with another campaign.

Set up your Iowa campaign in an afternoon

Upload the voter file, ask for your first list in plain English, and hand your volunteers the walking app. Signup is open to candidates in every state. Pricing is set after a short call so it matches the size of the race.

Get started Book a demo

Iowa questions we get asked

Where do I file to run for city council in Iowa?

With the county auditor for your city, or with the city clerk if the auditor has designated the clerk to accept nomination papers; the Iowa Secretary of State's city candidate guide tells you to ask the controlling county auditor which office applies (Iowa Code 376.4). You file an affidavit of candidacy and a nomination petition together, no earlier than 71 and no later than 47 days before the November election, by 5:00 p.m. on the last day. School board candidates file with the secretary of the school board instead (277.4).

Do Iowa city council and school board candidates have to report to the Ethics Board?

Yes, once you cross $1,000. Every candidate for state or local office in Iowa is covered by chapter 68A, administered by the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board. When you raise or spend more than $1,000 in a calendar year, including your own money, you have 10 days to file a statement of organization (DR-1) electronically and open a committee bank account in Iowa. City candidates then report five days before the general election and every January 19; school board candidates report five days before the election and January 19. Nothing is filed with the city clerk or county auditor.

Is there a filing fee to run for local office in Iowa?

No. The Iowa Secretary of State's candidate guides state flatly that there are no filing fees in Iowa, for city (376.4) or school (277.4) offices. Your only ballot-access cost is collecting petition signatures: at least 2 percent of the last vote for the office and never fewer than 10 for a city seat, and the greater of 10 or 1 percent of registered voters, capped at 50, for a school board seat.

When is the filing deadline for the 2027 Iowa city and school elections?

Thursday, September 16, 2027 at 5:00 p.m., with the window opening Monday, August 23, 2027, for the regular city and school election on November 2, 2027. Iowa cities that have adopted primary provisions file earlier, August 9 through August 26, 2027, ahead of an October 5 primary. These dates come from the Iowa Secretary of State's three-year election calendar and the 71-to-47-day rule in Iowa Code 376.4 and 277.4.

What are Iowa's contribution limits for local candidates?

There are none. Iowa sets no cap on what an individual, PAC, union, or partnership may give a candidate for any office. The one hard rule is the source ban in Iowa Code 68A.503: corporations, banks, savings associations, credit unions, and insurance companies may not contribute money or in-kind help to a candidate. You must record the name and address of anyone who gives more than $25 and itemize them on your reports.

How do I get the voter list for my Iowa city or school district?

Order it from the Iowa Secretary of State or your county auditor. The state price is $10 for up to 20,000 records plus $0.50 per 1,000 records after that, emailed as an Excel or CSV file with your choice of participation history (the last five elections of every type, or specific elections), party, and active or inactive status. A statewide file with updates all year is $1,500. Iowa Code 48A.38 lets any person buy it for political purposes, but commercial use is a serious misdemeanor and purchasers are logged in a public record. Lists can take up to 14 days.

Does Iowa allow same-day voter registration?

Yes. Iowa's pre-registration deadline is 5:00 p.m. 15 days before the election (48A.9), but an eligible person can register at the county auditor's office while voting absentee in person after that, or at the polling place on election day, by showing a current Iowa driver's license or ID, or another current photo ID with an expiration date plus proof of residence such as a lease, utility bill, or bank statement, or by having a registered voter of the precinct sign an oath (48A.7A). Plan for supporters who are not yet on your list.

How do I track absentee ballots in an Iowa local election?

Buy an absentee list subscription. The Iowa Secretary of State sells a countywide absentee list with updates for $40 a year and a statewide one for $450, and your county auditor sells the county's own absentee request list; Iowa Code 48A.38 requires updates at least biweekly and, on request, after registration closes. In-person absentee voting starts 20 days before the election and mail requests close 15 days before, so a two-week ballot chase covers most of the early vote. Ask the auditor whether the export includes the returned-ballot date.

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Sources

Facts on this page were checked against the official sources below on September 9, 2026. Rules change between cycles; when a number here and the agency disagree, the agency is right.