U.S. Senate
Ashley Hinson
62.4%2,506
Josh Turek
34.1%1,369
Thomas Laehn
3.5%140
Statewide: Josh Turek wins. Called.
Palo Alto County, Iowa
2026 election results. Zach Lahn (R) got 62% of the vote for governor in Palo Alto County. The margin is 20.7 points more Democratic than the 2024 presidential vote here. Below are also 12 local contests from the state's own results.
2026 results in Palo Alto County
Governor
Zach Lahn
62.4%2,517
Rob Sand
37.6%1,514
Statewide: Rob Sand wins. Called.
U.S. House: Iowa 4th District
Chris McGowan
67.3%2,650
Dave Dawson
32.7%1,287
Whole district: Chris McGowan wins. Called.
The leader in Palo Alto County is only who has the most votes counted here. Races are won statewide or district-wide, and only the race pages report calls. Last vote update here Nov 6, 11:34 AM.
12 local contests in Palo Alto County
Local measures and judges on Palo Alto County's ballots, from Iowa's official results file. Names are as the state prints them. "Ahead" describes the current count; it isn't a race call, and we don't call measures. Source delayed. The last usable results are shown.
Local measures
Emmetsburg School - Public Measure A
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 1,165 | 54.1% |
| No | 988 | 45.9% |
Yes ahead with 54.1% in Palo Alto County.
North Union School - Public Measure HF
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| No | 31 | 77.5% |
| Yes | 9 | 22.5% |
No ahead with 77.5% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 2 other counties; across all of them: No 863 (64.9%), Yes 466 (35.1%).
Pocahontas Area School - Public Measure RQ
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 4 | 100.0% |
| No | 0 | 0.0% |
Yes ahead with 100.0% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 2 other counties; across all of them: Yes 1,103 (55.4%), No 889 (44.6%).
Judges
Court of Appeals Judge - Sharon Soorholtz Greer
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,192 | 77.4% |
| No | 641 | 22.6% |
Yes ahead with 77.4% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 98 other counties; across all of them: Yes 679,101 (71.3%), No 273,907 (28.7%).
Court of Appeals Judge - John M. Sandy
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,339 | 80.0% |
| No | 584 | 20.0% |
Yes ahead with 80.0% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 98 other counties; across all of them: Yes 673,328 (70.9%), No 277,019 (29.1%).
Court of Appeals Judge - Julie A. Schumacher
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,249 | 80.1% |
| No | 558 | 19.9% |
Yes ahead with 80.1% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 98 other counties; across all of them: Yes 707,287 (73.8%), No 251,442 (26.2%).
District 3A Judge - Charles Borth
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,181 | 78.6% |
| No | 593 | 21.4% |
Yes ahead with 78.6% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 9 other counties; across all of them: Yes 30,716 (80.7%), No 7,340 (19.3%).
District 3A Judge - Adam Miller
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,215 | 80.3% |
| No | 543 | 19.7% |
Yes ahead with 80.3% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 9 other counties; across all of them: Yes 30,800 (81.9%), No 6,829 (18.1%).
District 3A Judge - Carl J. Petersen
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,220 | 80.2% |
| No | 547 | 19.8% |
Yes ahead with 80.2% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 9 other counties; across all of them: Yes 30,849 (81.2%), No 7,121 (18.8%).
District 3A Judge - Andrew J. Smith
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,165 | 78.4% |
| No | 597 | 21.6% |
Yes ahead with 78.4% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 9 other counties; across all of them: Yes 30,030 (80.0%), No 7,499 (20.0%).
District 3A Associate Judge - Kristi Busse
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,241 | 79.9% |
| No | 564 | 20.1% |
Yes ahead with 79.9% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 9 other counties; across all of them: Yes 31,239 (82.1%), No 6,815 (17.9%).
District 3A Associate Judge - Jennifer Bennett Finn
| Choice | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 2,182 | 78.3% |
| No | 606 | 21.7% |
Yes ahead with 78.3% in Palo Alto County. The contest crosses into 9 other counties; across all of them: Yes 29,812 (78.8%), No 8,010 (21.2%).
Iowa's official results, file posted Nov 13, 3:23 PM. Unofficial until certified.
Compared with 2024
| Race | Margin | 2024 president | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|
| IA Senate | R +29.3 | R +45.5 | D +16.2 |
| IA Governor | R +24.9 | R +45.5 | D +20.7 |
| IA-04 | R +34.6 | R +45.5 | D +10.9 |
Margins compare the Democrat and the Republican only. The 2024 column is the presidential margin in the same places as each race's votes here. Shift is this year's margin minus it, shown once at least 90% of the expected vote is counted. A dash means there's no 2024 figure for those exact places.
How Palo Alto County has voted for president
| Year | Democrat | Share | Republican | Share | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Kamala Harris | 26.9% | Donald Trump | 71.8% | R +44.9 |
| 2020 | Joe Biden | 30.6% | Donald Trump | 68.0% | R +37.3 |
| 2016 | Hillary Clinton | 29.7% | Donald Trump | 65.5% | R +35.8 |
| 2012 | Barack Obama | 43.8% | Mitt Romney | 54.4% | R +10.7 |
| 2008 | Barack Obama | 50.5% | John McCain | 47.7% | D +2.8 |
| 2004 | John Kerry | 47.8% | George W. Bush | 51.5% | R +3.7 |
| 2000 | Al Gore | 48.2% | George W. Bush | 48.5% | R +0.3 |
Shares are of all presidential votes, and the margin is the Democrat's share minus the Republican's. Since 2000, the presidential margin here has moved R +44.6.
Other counties in Iowa
Iowa results- Adair County
- Adams County
- Allamakee County
- Appanoose County
- Audubon County
- Benton County
- Black Hawk County
- Boone County
- Bremer County
- Buchanan County
- Buena Vista County
- Butler County
- Calhoun County
- Carroll County
- Cass County
- Cedar County
- Cerro Gordo County
- Cherokee County
- Chickasaw County
- Clarke County
- Clay County
- Clayton County
- Clinton County
- Crawford County
- Dallas County
- Davis County
- Decatur County
- Delaware County
- Des Moines County
- Dickinson County
- Dubuque County
- Emmet County
- Fayette County
- Floyd County
- Franklin County
- Fremont County
- Greene County
- Grundy County
- Guthrie County
- Hamilton County
- Hancock County
- Hardin County
- Harrison County
- Henry County
- Howard County
- Humboldt County
- Ida County
- Iowa County
- Jackson County
- Jasper County
- Jefferson County
- Johnson County
- Jones County
- Keokuk County
- Kossuth County
- Lee County
- Linn County
- Louisa County
- Lucas County
- Lyon County
- Madison County
- Mahaska County
- Marion County
- Marshall County
- Mills County
- Mitchell County
- Monona County
- Monroe County
- Montgomery County
- Muscatine County
- O'Brien County
- Osceola County
- Page County
- Plymouth County
- Pocahontas County
- Polk County
- Pottawattamie County
- Poweshiek County
- Ringgold County
- Sac County
- Scott County
- Shelby County
- Sioux County
- Story County
- Tama County
- Taylor County
- Union County
- Van Buren County
- Wapello County
- Warren County
- Washington County
- Wayne County
- Webster County
- Winnebago County
- Winneshiek County
- Woodbury County
- Worth County
- Wright County
Sources & scope
Votes for 2026 come from the count this site reads, by county. They're unofficial until Iowa certifies them. Past presidential votes are from MEDSL and VEST, via Polling Forecast. Iowa's own results, deadlines and offices are on the state page.