DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowans broke the record for participation in local elections on Tuesday. In 2019, roughly 358,000 Iowans voted in local elections. On Tuesday, 425,000 cast their ballot, and officials are still waiting on numbers from two counties. This is only the second time city and school elections have been held on the same day. The first time that happened was in 2019, where we saw voter turnout go up 156% in school elections. IOWA (IRN) – UAW workers have voted down a second proposed contract from John Deere, putting 10,000 workers back on strike. Picketing was halted on Tuesday as union members voted on the new contract. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A former Dubuque private school administrator and principal who stole at least $250,000 over the last ten years pleaded guilty to wire fraud on Monday in federal court in Cedar Rapids. Todd Wessels, 49, served as the Curriculum and Technology Director for the Holy Ghost Catholic School and before 2016, was also the principal. Wessels used district funds to make personal purchases on school credit cards. ​​CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Legalized casino gambling could still come to Linn County after voters decided to extend its approval on Tuesday. While the county has no casinos, roughly 55% of voters voted yes on a referendum that allowed excursion gambling boats or gambling structure activities to continue. Approximately 45% voted no. AMES, IA (IRN) – Deer across Iowa are contracting coronavirus, and experts have said it’s spreading like wildfire. Experts at Iowa State University said nearly 80% of deer in their sample tested positive for coronavirus. The good news is that it can’t be passed to humans from animals.

CARLISLE, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says hazmat crews spent most of Monday cleaning up materials that spilled into the Middle River after a train went off the tracks near Carlisle. The train derailment happened Friday night. The Iowa DNR says 20 rail cars spilled lumber, salt, 30,000 gallons of corn syrup and polyethylene pellets. One car went down the riverbank, leaking polyethylene pellets into the river. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Workers on a construction site in Cedar Rapids found the body of a man yesterday. Police say it appears to be an unattended death. OELWEIN, IA (IRN) Two have been arrested in connection to a shots fired incident near Oelwein on October 16th. An investigation concluded there was a party with multiple people and a fight broke out when shots were fired. No injuries were reported. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Yesterday was the deadline for workers at all three Des Moines hospitals to be vaccinated or get fired. In August, UnityPoint, MercyOne and Broadlawns announced they expected all employees to be vaccinated, unless they had a medical or religious exemption. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Former Vice President Mike Pence spoke to a crowd of hundreds of students and others at the Iowa Memorial Union on the University of Iowa campus yesterday. The event was the first in the Young America’s Foundation’s campus lecture series titled the Preserving American Liberty and Freedom series. It promotes conservative voices and brings them to college campuses across the country.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A man is in critical condition after he was struck by a car during a hit-and-run crash last night in Des Moines. Authorities found the injured man lying in the street. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – An Illinois man has been arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting a man outside a Davenport strip club earlier this month. Lance Johnson, 28, of Rock Island, Illinois, was arrested Thursday by Rock Island police in the shooting death of Samuel Wires, 35, of Davenport. DALLAS CENTER, IA (IRN) – A family in Dallas Center lost their home Sunday after a massive fire burned it to the ground. At least 10 fire departments helped put out the flames, hauling water for miles to the rural area. No one was injured. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Some pharmacies across Iowa are shortening their hours because they are short on staff. There is a lack of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians all around the state, according to Renae Chesnut, the dean of Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences. She cites burnout due to the pandemic as the source of the shortage. MOLINE, IL (IRN) – The United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers (UAW) announced Saturday it reached a tentative agreement with John Deere. UAW said the John Deere bargaining team reached a tentative agreement, but the strike will continue while they finish the process of verifying the agreement.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – One person was hurt in a shooting incident in Cedar Rapids on Saturday night. An adult male who had been shot was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment of what officials described as non-life-threatening injuries. Police said they took a juvenile suspect into custody after gathering evidence at the scene. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Some pharmacies across Iowa are shortening their hours because they are short on staff. There is a lack of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians all around the state right now, according to Renae Chesnut, the dean of Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences. She cites burnout due to the pandemic as the source of the shortage. MOLINE, IL (IRN) – The United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers (UAW) announced Saturday it reached a tentative agreement with John Deere. UAW said the John Deere bargaining team reached a tentative agreement, but the strike will continue while they finish the process of verifying the agreement. IOWA (IRN) – West Virginia beat No. 22 Iowa State 38-31 in college football Saturday, and Wisconsin beat No. 9 Iowa 27-7.

URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – An Urbandale man was arrested after police said he tried to kill his girlfriend when she was breaking up with him. Nathan Aguirre, 30, was charged with attempted murder and willful injury causing serious injury. Aguirre admitted to pulling a knife and cutting his girlfriend multiple times during an argument Thursday night. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A 13-year-old girl in Dubuque was taken into custody Thursday after stabbing two other teens. Dubuque Police responded to a report of a large disturbance and found the two stabbed girls. JOHNSTON, IA (IRN) – The Johnston school board race has attracted the attention of right-wing political action group 1776 Action. The group, which draws inspiration from former President Donald Trump’s 1776 Commission and lists correcting “anti-American indoctrination” among its goals, claims three Johnston School Board candidates signed their pledge of objectives. The 1776 Commission has been panned by historians as being inaccurate and biased. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Friday that the state has joined nine other states in a lawsuit that challenges President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate for workers employed by federal contractors.