Three primary elections on June 2

LEE COUNTY – The 2026 primary election season will be active this spring.
County lists for the primary were released on Friday and two seats on the Lee County Board of Supervisors will have primary contests.
In District 3, Republican Christopher Seeley Brown of Farmington has filed to seek the seat being vacated by Chuck Holmes, who isn’t seeking re-election. Holmes said last week that this would be his last term, but he wanted to continue to serve in a voluntary capacity. Holmes was appointed to replace Rich Harlow in June of 2022 and was elected running unopposed in that year’s fall election.
Also seeking the District 3 seat is Republican Sam Wilson of Donnellson. Wilson is currently a trustee in Jefferson Township where he serves with Lee County Republican chairman James Creen.
No Democrats have taken out papers for the seat.
According to the candidate list obtained from Lee County Auditor Sherri Yasenchok, the only Democrat to file papers for a county office in the upcoming election was Chris Greenwald of Fort Madison. The former Fort Madison City Councilman is running for the District 2 seat currently held by Republican Tim Wondra who was appointed to replace Tom Schulz who resigned in March.
Wondra, a former Fort Madison School Board member and president, has also filed to retain his seat. He will be challenged in the primary by Schulz, who has taken out papers again for the District 2 seat after sitting out a year. Schulz put his name in for consideration for the appointment in the spring after resigning, as did Greenwald, but Wondra was appointed by a group consisting of Yasenchok, Lee County Recorder Nancy Booten, and Lee County Treasurer Becky Gaylord.
Greenwald won’t be opposed in the primary and will face the winner of Wondra and Schulz in the general election, Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Running unopposed in the primary are three county positions. Gaylord is running unopposed in the Republican primary, as is Booten, and Lee County Attorney Ross J. Braden.
Voter pre-registration for the primary is Monday, May 18 and for the general election is Monday, Oct. 19. The candidate filing window for the general election is Aug. 3-Aug. 26.
State candidates who have filed papers to seek election in Lee County include incumbent State Reps. Matt Rinker (R-Burlington) from District 99, and Blaine Watkins (R-Donnellson) of District 100. Three Democrats will battle it out in the primary to challenge Rinker. Jim Beres, Jennifer Kirkman, and Marcques Derby, all Democrats and all of Burlington, will run in the primary.
There will be no primary challenge in District 100 as only former Fort Madison city councilman, mayor, and Lee County supervisor Matt Mohrfeld filed to run on the Democratic side. No Republicans challenged Watkins for the seat.