Ballots counted by an absentee and special precinct board did not move the needle much on close races in Scott County.
An additional 63 ballots were counted in Scott County by an absentee and special precinct board that met Tuesday to review provisional ballots as well as military ballots that arrived after Election Day.
The Scott County Board of Supervisors canvassed the 2024 election results with those additional ballots Wednesday morning, finalizing one step in the certification of election results. A canvass is an official tally of the election results.
In Scott County, there were 52 provisional ballots, which are set aside by poll workers if a voter doesn’t have all the requirements to vote at the time. That number included records of a few challenges that were already resolved at the polls — in those cases the voter’s ballot was already counted in election night tallies.
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Ballots were held as provisional for a variety reasons.
Some voters had not brought ID to the polls, and needed to bring ID to the Auditor’s Office to have their ballot counted. Some voters were flagged as being convicted of a felony and the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office verified if they’d completed requirements to have their voting rights restored. One hadn’t surrendered a requested absentee ballot at the Election Day polling location. A few were flagged as late registrations, and the Auditor’s Office verified the voters hadn’t voted anywhere else in order to count the ballot.
The board also decided to count U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks’ ballot after a challenge to her residency.
Several were challenged because of an order handed down by the Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate to automatically challenge ballots of a list of residents that at one point reported to the state Department of Transportation they were not U.S. citizens, and, Pate said, the office could not verify if they had since become citizens.
Voters whose ballots were automatically challenged by this process had to bring in documentation to the Auditor’s Office, such as a U.S. passport or a citizenship certificate to have their ballot count.
There were 94 Scott County residents on Pate’s list, and it’s not clear yet how many voted. At least 24 provisional ballot envelopes shown to the Quad-City Times were marked as citizenship-related.
Of the 52 provisional ballots or records counted by the special precinct board, 19 were rejected. Scott County Auditor Kerri Tompkins said Wednesday she did not off-hand know how many of those 19 rejected ballots were citizenship-related.
How provisional and military ballots affected close races
In close races in Scott County, additional ballots counted did not impact the results much:
- Christina Bohannan picked up a net single vote over Mariannette Miller-Meeks in Scott County (30 added for Bohannan and 29 for Miller-Meeks) District-wide in Iowa’s 20-county 1st Congressional District, Miller-Meeks is ahead by fewer than 800 votes of about 400,000 cast.
- Nathan Ramker picked up a net two votes in the close District 98 race (seven for Ramker and five for Kurth). That race is separated by 45 votes, with 6,585 votes for Kurth and 6,540 votes for Ramker.
- Rita Rawson picked up a net four votes in the race for Scott County supervisor (25 for Rawson and 21 for Maria Bribriesco). That race is separated by 79 votes at 41,050 votes for Bribriesco and 40,971 votes for Rawson.
In Iowa, counties were required to canvass results either Tuesday or Wednesday. Normally, it’s the Monday or Tuesday after Election Day, but the canvass was moved back a day because of the Veterans Day holiday.
Now that canvasses are complete, candidates can request recounts. In Scott County, the deadline is 5 p.m. Monday to request a recount.
Ramker previously told the Quad-City Times he plans to request a recount. Rawson said she does not have plans to request a recount.
In the case of a candidate-requested recount, a three-member board conducts the recount. The board is made up of a member selected by each candidate and a third member agreed upon by both parties. If they can’t agree on a third, the district chief judge will appoint one.
If voting equipment was used, the board may request ballots be recounted by voting equipment, by hand or both. The county auditor is responsible for security of the ballots.
Recounts must be completed no later than 18 days after the county canvass.
The state covers the costs of recounts if the margin of victory is within 50 votes or 1% of the total votes cast, whichever is greater.
After the Iowa Secretary of State receives all counties’ canvassed votes, a state panel made up of the governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, secretary of agriculture and state auditor, meet to review and declare results for state and federal offices. The deadline for the state to conduct its canvass this year is Dec. 2.
Bribriesco sworn in as Scott County Supervisor
Maria Bribriesco is sworn in on Wednesday to be Scott County Supervisor after the canvass of the votes. She defeated appointed supervisor Rita Rawson in the Nov. 5, 2024 general election by a slim margin.
Surrounded by her husband, sons and grandchildren on Wednesday morning Bribriesco, a Democrat, took the oath of office and was seated as Scott County Supervisor.
Under state law, since Rawson was appointed and given the timing of when the term expires, the person elected is sworn in once the results are official to serve out the rest of the unexpired term.
“This is a wonderful feeling,” Bribriesco said Wednesday morning. “It’s a feeling of euphoria and happiness. So many people are not feeling upbeat, but the results of my election has given some happiness.”
Bribriesco said she’s ready to bring a new perspective to the previously all-Republican Board of Supervisors.
Bribriesco said her goal is to bring more attention to important items on the supervisors’ agenda, raise the issue of county funding for the nonprofit Center for Active Seniors, Inc., and explore whether the county can or should have an expanded role in approving concentrated animal feeding operations.
Current board Chair Ken Beck was reelected. Two seats on the Board of Supervisors were up for election, and the top two vote-getters won the positions.
Beck received the most votes of any of the five candidates on the ballot — 41,698 votes, about 650 more than Bribriesco, who received the second most.
“I was pleased with the turn out and thank those who did get out to vote. I want to especially thank those that supported my reelection efforts and I am honored to have earned their vote,” Beck wrote in an email. “For my next term, I will continue to focus on our top Strategic Plan priorities which are Employees, Facilities and Operational Efficiencies. I will remain fiscally conservative, financially responsible and committed to providing essential services, while preserving our beautiful parks and attractions. I will continue to be an advocate for mental health services as the management transitions from a regional approach to a state agency.”
Maria Bribriesco hugs her son, Andrew Bribriesco, who drove in from Cedar Rapids to see his mother’s swearing-in Wednesday, Nov. 13. Bribriesco defeated appointed supervisor Rita Rawson in the Nov. 5, 2024 general election by a slim margin.
President-elect Donald Trump visited the White House for a nearly two-hour meeting with President Joe Biden on Wednesday, and committing to a straightforward transition of power despite actively working to disrupt the same process four years ago.
Here are the people Trump has picked for key positions so far
President-elect Donald Trump
Susie Wiles, chief of staff
Susie Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager.
Wiles has a background in Florida politics. She helped Ron DeSantis win his first race for Florida governor. Six years later, she was key to Trump’s defeat of him in the 2024 Republican primary.
Wiles’ hire was Trump’s first major decision as president-elect and one that could be a defining test of his incoming administration considering her close relationship with the president-elect. Wiles is said to have earned Trump’s trust in part by guiding what was the most disciplined of Trump’s three presidential campaigns.
Wiles was able to help keep Trump on track as few others have, not by criticizing his impulses, but by winning his respect by demonstrating his success after taking her advice.
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, secretary of state
Trump named Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state, making a former sharp critic his choice to be the new administration’s top diplomat.
Rubio, 53, is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump’s running mate on the Republican ticket last summer. Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
“He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement.
The announcement punctuates the hard pivot Rubio has made with Trump, whom the senator called a “con man” during his unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination.
Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House. And as Trump campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio cheered his proposals. For instance, Rubio, who more than a decade ago helped craft immigration legislation that included a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, now supports Trump’s plan to use the U.S. military for mass deportations.
Pete Hegseth, secretary of defense
Pete Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show.
Hegseth lacks senior military or national security experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea.
Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free,” published earlier this year.
U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, attorney general
Trump said Wednesday he will nominate Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz to serve as his attorney general, naming a loyalist in the role of the nation’s top prosecutor.
In selecting Gaetz, 42, Trump passed over some of the more established lawyers whose names had been mentioned as being contenders for the job.
“Matt will end Weaponized Government, protect our Borders, dismantle Criminal Organizations and Restore Americans’ badly-shattered Faith and Confidence in the Justice Department,” Trump said in a statement.
The House Ethics Committee is currently investigating an allegation that Gaetz paid for sex with a 17-year-old. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing.
Kristi Noem, secretary of homeland security
Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a well-known conservative who faced sharp criticism for telling a story in her memoir about shooting a rambunctious dog, to lead an agency crucial to the president-elect’s hardline immigration agenda.
Noem used her two terms leading a tiny state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics.
South Dakota is usually a political afterthought. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, Noem did not order restrictions that other states had issued and instead declared her state “open for business.” Trump held a fireworks rally at Mount Rushmore in July 2020 in one of the first large gatherings of the pandemic.
She takes over a department with a sprawling mission. In addition to key immigration agencies, the Department of Homeland Security oversees natural disaster response, the U.S. Secret Service, and Transportation Security Administration agents who work at airports.
Tulsi Gabbard, director of national intelligence
Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been tapped by Trump to be director of national intelligence, keeping with the trend to stock his Cabinet with loyal personalities rather than veteran professionals in their requisite fields.
Gabbard, 43, was a Democratic House member who unsuccessfully sought the party’s 2020 presidential nomination before leaving the party in 2022. She endorsed Trump in August and campaigned often with him this fall.
“I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community,” Trump said in a statement.
Gabbard, who has served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades, deploying to Iraq and Kuwait, would come to the role as somewhat of an outsider compared to her predecessor. The current director, Avril Haines, was confirmed by the Senate in 2021 following several years in a number of top national security and intelligence positions.
John Ratcliffe, CIA director
Trump has picked John Ratcliffe, a former Texas congressman who served as director of national intelligence during his first administration, to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency in his next.
Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during the final year and a half of Trump’s first term, leading the U.S. government’s spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation’s highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement, calling him a “fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans” who would ensure “the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.”
Elise Stefanik, United Nations ambassador
Rep. Elise Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump’s staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment.
Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership.
Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile.
If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah.
Mike Huckabee, ambassador to Israel
Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel.
Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel’s interests as it wages wars against the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah.
“He loves Israel, and likewise the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East.”
Huckabee, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, has been a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are God’s chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland.
Trump has been praised by some in this important Republican voting bloc for moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Steven Witkoff, special envoy to the Middle East
Trump on Tuesday named real estate investor Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East.
The 67-year-old Witkoff is the president-elect’s golf partner and was golfing with him at Trump’s club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15, when the former president was the target of a second attempted assassination.
Witkoff “is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” Trump said of Witkoff in a statement. “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud.”
Trump also named Witkoff co-chair, with former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of his inaugural committee.
Mike Waltz, national security adviser
Trump asked Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, Trump announced in a statement Tuesday.
The move puts Waltz in the middle of national security crises, ranging from efforts to provide weapons to Ukraine and worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah.
“Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda,” Trump’s statement said, “and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!”
Waltz is a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan and also worked in the Pentagon as a policy adviser when Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates were defense chiefs.
He is considered hawkish on China, and called for a U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to its involvement in the origin of COVID-19 and its mistreatment of the minority Muslim Uighur population.
Lee Zeldin, Environmental Protection Agency
Trump has chosen former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.
Zeldin does not appear to have any experience in environmental issues, but is a longtime supporter of the former president. The 44-year-old former U.S. House member from New York wrote on X, “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI.” “We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” he added.
During his campaign, Trump often attacked the Biden administration’s promotion of electric vehicles, and incorrectly referring to a tax credit for EV purchases as a government mandate. Trump also often told his audiences during the campaign his administration would “Drill, baby, drill,” referring to his support for expanded petroleum exploration.
In a statement, Trump said Zeldin “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet.”
Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff for policy
Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner, was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump’s priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump’s first administration.
Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump’s policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families.
Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation’s economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller has served as the president of America First Legal, an organization made up of former Trump advisers aimed at challenging the Biden administration, media companies, universities and others over issues such as free speech and national security.
Tom Homan, ‘border czar’
Thomas Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history.
Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign.
Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump’s policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to “run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.”
Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border.
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to advise White House on government efficiency
Elon Musk, left, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at an Oct. 27 campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Trump on Tuesday said Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency” — which is not, despite the name, a government agency.
The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk’s favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” He added the move would shock government systems. It’s not clear how the organization will operate.
Musk, owner of X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since Trump won the presidential election. Ramaswamy suspended his campaign in January and threw his support behind Trump. Trump said the two will “pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.”
Additional selections to the incoming White House
Dan Scavino, deputy chief of staff
Scavino, whom Trump’s transition referred to in a statement as one of “Trump’s longest serving and most trusted aides,” was a senior adviser to Trump’s 2024 campaign, as well as his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. He will be deputy chief of staff and assistant to the president.
Scavino had run Trump’s social media profile in the White House during his first administration. He was also held in contempt of Congress in 2022 after a month-long refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House committee’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
James Blair, deputy chief of staff
Blair was political director for Trump’s 2024 campaign and for the Republican National Committee. He will be deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs and assistant to the president.
Blair was key to Trump’s economic messaging during his winning White House comeback campaign this year, a driving force behind the candidate’s “Trump can fix it” slogan and his query to audiences this fall if they were better off than four years ago.
Taylor Budowich, deputy chief of staff
Budowich is a veteran Trump campaign aide who launched and directed Make America Great Again, Inc., a super PAC that supported Trump’s 2024 campaign. He will be deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel and assistant to the president.
Budowich also had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency.
William McGinley, White House counsel
McGinley was White House Cabinet secretary during Trump’s first administration, and was outside legal counsel for the Republican National Committee’s election integrity effort during the 2024 campaign.
In a statement, Trump called McGinley “a smart and tenacious lawyer who will help me advance our America First agenda, while fighting for election integrity and against the weaponization of law enforcement.”
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