State Senator Roby Smith is on track to outspend State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald, if the latest reports filed with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board are any guide.

A news release from the Republican’s campaign boasted that its donations, totaling $213,391.15 so far this election cycle, “have set an all-time record” for a candidate for Iowa state treasurer. Smith raised substantially more than Fitzgerald during the latest reporting period and had nearly three times as much cash on hand.

But it would be premature to conclude, as Smith’s news release asserted, “Our historic fundraising number and Fitzgerald’s lack of support shows Iowans are clearly ready for change.”

Each candidate takes advantages into what could be Iowa’s most competitive state treasurer’s race in four decades.

A divided state board has approved settlements worth a combined $4.15 million to two women who reported extensive, appalling sexual misconduct by former Iowa Finance Authority Director Dave Jamison. Under the agreements posted in full below, $2.35 million will go to the agency’s former business development director Beth Mahaffey, and $1.8 million will go to the agency’s communications director Ashley Jared. Attorney’s fees for both women will come out of those payments.

The settlements bring closure to women who endured a horrific workplace environment. But they also ensure that oversight failures at the finance authority will never be fully explored in litigation.

The first Democrat to serve as Iowa’s state auditor in more than 50 years has hired a “tri-partisan leadership team” to help run the office.

Pete McRoberts: “it is absolutely essential that we as party activists affirmatively stop this problem from simply getting hidden among everything else going on, and from turning into just “one more thing.” -promoted by desmoinesdem

We are all aware of Dave Jamison’s terrible actions that led to his firing as Iowa Finance Authority director in March. Since then, Jamison appealed his case, for unemployment insurance purposes. Administrative Judge Nicole Merrill ruled against Jamison yesterday, and her decision is a study in contrasts. One piece of the judge’s ruling jumped out at me. The person doing the firing believed the woman when she said she had been harassed; so the offender was fired.

We Democrats have a similar problem to fix.

With three weeks to go before Iowa’s June 5 primary, Democrat Fred Hubbell had already spent nearly twice as much on his gubernatorial campaign as Terry Branstad did to win the Republican nomination in 2010.

Follow me after the jump for highlights from campaign finance disclosures by Governor Kim Reynolds and her Democratic challengers. Posts in progress will cover newsworthy details about other Iowa candidates’ fundraising and spending. All the latest reports, which were due May 21, are available here.

UPDATE: On April 26 the governor’s office released a redacted version of the written complaint against Jamison, now enclosed at the end of this post.

Governor Kim Reynolds and her staff continue to withhold details on the “credible allegations” of sexual harassment that ended Dave Jamison’s tenure as director of the Iowa Finance Authority last month.

To hear her tell the story, the stonewalling is all about protecting Jamison’s victims. But Reynolds could provide more details–and comply with state law–without revealing the accusers’ identities.