Democrat Angel Ramirez will soon be the first Latina to serve in the Iowa legislature, after winning the April 29 special election in House district 78 by a commanding margin.

Ramirez outperformed the partisan lean of the district, defeating Republican Bernie Hayes by 2,742 votes to 721 (79.0 percent to 20.8 percent), according to unofficial results from all precincts. Voters in House district 78 preferred Kamala Harris to Donald Trump by 65.2 percent to 32.7 percent in the 2024 presidential election.

It’s the third special Iowa legislative election of 2025, and Democrats greatly improved on the Harris benchmark in all three races. According to a spreadsheet compiled by “elections nerd” Ethan C7, Democrats have outperformed in most of this year’s special elections around the country, with Ramirez, Iowa Senate district 35 candidate Mike Zimmer, and Iowa House district 100 candidate Nannette Griffin putting up the largest swings compared to the 2024 presidential results in their areas.

The field is set for the April 29 special election in Iowa House district 78. Democrats nominated Angel Ramirez at an April 12 nominating convention. Linn County Republicans chair Bernie Hayes won the GOP nomination at an April 14 convention.

Ramirez won on the first ballot in a four-way Democratic field. She is the co-founder and executive director of Our Future, a nonprofit fellowship for young leaders, and a Youth Peace Project Facilitator with the Kids First Law Center.

If elected, she would be the first Latina to serve in the Iowa legislature. She’s also “a proud first-generation college graduate from Coe College,” according to her campaign website. She told Iowa News Now after the convention, “it’s not the time for the status quo” and Democrats need to stand for “a progressive vision,” to help the working class, health care system, public education, LGBTQ neighbors.