UPDATE: Desmund Adams to Suspend Campaign Temporarily; Special Election set for December

It's a new wrinkle in what has already been a long and hard-fought battle for State Senate seat 22 in the Iowa Legislature.

The death on Monday of State Sen. Pat Ward from breast cancer surprised both GOP supporters and Democrats in the area. And the death of the 55-year-old Republican from Clive had voters and party leaders asking what happens when such an unfortunate event occurs.

The answer: Yet another election.

Ward was running for election in Senate District 22 against Democrat Desmund Adams. The district includes parts of West Des Moines, Clive, Waukee and Windsor Heights.

Iowa Code spells out the steps, which the Iowa Republican website shares verbatim.

Essentially, the state code calls for a special election in such a case; so the November election results will be essentially meaningless in Senate District 22. The code says the votes will not be canvassed from the Nov. 6 election.

Instead, a special election will be held Dec. 11 between Democrat Adams and a Republican candidate to be selected at a special nominating convention.

According to the Des Moines Register, Republicans must nominate a candidate to succeed Ward by Nov. 13.

Opponent Praises Ward's Service

Adams released a statement Monday afternoon saying that he will temporarily suspend his campaign.

“We are all taken back by the death of Mrs. Ward," Adams said in the release. "I, and my family, lift up the Ward family in our thoughts and prayers. I ask all of our supporters and all Iowans to do the same. Over the years many people have been touched by Mrs. Ward’s public service and it is indeed a sad day for all of Iowa.

"In light of this tragic event, I am suspending, for a brief period, my campaign.  Let us use this time to cherish her memory.”.

According to the Iowa Republican website, since the GOP only needs to gain two seats to gain control of the Iowa Senate, the special election in Senate District 22 may very well end up determining who controls the Senate. The website says that Ron Paul's influence within county Republican central committees could also shape the type of candidate who is nominated.

University of Iowa political science professor Tim Hagle told Patch he didn't know of similar situations in recent Iowa politics, but there have been cases in other states that made the news. One was the death of Democrat Mel Carnahan in a plane crash a few weeks before the 2000 Missouri Senate election against incumbent Republican John Ashcroft. Carnahan remained on the ballot and won with his wife the unofficial candidate, Hagle said. Carnahan's wife was then appointed to the seat by the governor.

What's at Stake in New Nominee

Iowa State University professor Dave Peterson says the timing of the nominee hinges on a couple of factors. Since the GOP can wait for other legislative races across Iowa to be settled in the Nov. 6 general election, Republicans will know if they have control of the Senate or not.

If the GOP has Senate control, the party might be free to let a candidate with a more extreme view, such as Waukee pastor Jeff Mullen, become the challenge to Adams, Peterson said.

But, if the GOP is still trying to gain or solidify its margin of control, the party would likely pick a more centrist candidate, Peterson said. "If the choice is made before the general election, (GOP leaders) would be stupid to pick an ideologue who will have harder time winning," he said.

It all makes Iowa's long election season even longer and more complicated.

"These races get weird and unpredictable at this point," Peterson said.

Having the special election a month after the general election could mean low voter turnout and less interest, he said, unless control of the Senate lies in the race's outcome.

"All bets are off and all rules are out the window," Peterson said.

The Republican nominee must be someon with skills, who knows the issues, and is able to get their message out quickly given the short time until the election, the professor said.

"It's tough to see how someone would run a State Senate campaign … a month after everybody is really tired of the election, is really tired of the campaign," he said.