Iowa Senate
The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly, United States. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency,. Each Senate district is composed of two House districts. The Senate meets at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines.
Unlike the lower house, the Iowa House of Representatives, Senators serve four-year terms, with no term limits. Terms are staggered so that half the Senate is up for reelection every two years.Leadership
The President of the Senate presides over the body, whose powers include referring bills to committee, recognizing members during debate, and making procedural rulings. Unlike the more powerful Speaker of the Iowa House of Representatives, the Senate President cannot appoint committee chairmanships or shuffle committee memberships. The Lieutenant Governor of Iowa was the presiding officer of the Senate until 1988, when an amendment to the Constitution of Iowa was passed in a referendum. The other partisan Senate leadership positions, such as the Majority and Minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses to head their parties in the chamber.
The President of the Senate is Republican Charles Schneider of the 22nd District. The Majority Leader is Republican Jack Whitver of the 19th District. The Minority Leader is Democratic Janet Petersen of the 18th District.Leaders
Committee Heads
*All Committee Heads are members of the Republican Party of Iowa.Current composition
Past notable members
- Samuel J. Kirkwood, two time Governor of Iowa ; two time U.S. Senator, ; U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
- George G. Wright, U.S. Senator from 1871 to 1877.
- Tom Vilsack, Governor of Iowa from 1999 to 2007, briefly Democratic candidate for the President of the United States in 2008, and United States Secretary of Agriculture from 2009 to 2017.
- George A. Wilson, Governor of Iowa from 1939 to 1943.
- Patty Judge, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture from 1999 to 2007, Lieutenant Governor of Iowa from 2007 to 2011
- Steve King, current U.S. House Representative, 2003–present.
- Joni Ernst, current U.S. Senator, in office since 2015.
Past composition of the Senate