IOWA – Voter registration numbers show Republicans are gaining in terms of new participants. KCRG-TV reports the GOP has 782,177 listed in their party, an increase of just over 33,000. Democrats have dropped from 672,490 to 650,112. At this point last year, Democrats had a registration edge in three of the four congressional districts, but Republicans now have that same edge statewide in each. IOWA – The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that low-income Iowa residents recovering from the impact of flooding beginning June 16th could be eligible for a helping hand from the USDA’s Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program . Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that approximately 4,000 households that may not normally be eligible under regular Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program rules may qualify for D-SNAP – if they meet certain criteria, including the disaster income limits and have qualifying disaster-related expenses. DES MOINES – Fireworks season has not been kind to parks in Iowa’s capital. KCCI-TV reports Des Moines Parks and Recreation has found damage due to Independence Day celebrations in 19 parks, with more expected to be discovered. Des Moines Police reported more than 700 fireworks-related complaints from July 1st through the 5th. COUNCIL BLUFFS – Google announced plans to spend $1 billion in Council Bluffs. Radio Iowa reports Google opened a data center in 2009 and another four years later. The corporation announced plans to expand to Cedar Rapids this past spring.  

CLEARFIELD – A Bedford man is in custody following an early morning shooting and death on the 4th of July. The Taylor County 911 Communication Center began to receive several calls for a shooting that occurred on Broadway Street in Clearfield early Thursday. When deputies arrived, they found one male dead from a gunshot wound. The victim has been identified as 19-year-old Colby Nelson. A forensic autopsy will be performed by the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner in Ankeny. Deputies took 37-year-old Alan Schultz into custody without incident. Schultz has been charged with Murder in the First Degree. SPENCER – The city of Spencer, along with so many others in northwest Iowa, are now in recovery mode after historic floods damaged thousands of buildings in the region. KCCI-TV reports 80 homes in the community collapsed and just over 2,000 structures total in the town have damage. The city reports that doesn’t include those who had flooded out basements. There are more than 200 residents who remain displaced as state and federal aid arrives.

NORWALK – A Norwalk woman charged with murder for the death of her newborn son last year has entered a guilty plea. WHO-13 reports Megan Staude is now guilty of 2nd degree murder. The 26-year-old and her father Rodney are accused of killing a newborn after she gave birth to the child in February of 2023. Police say the two placed the newborn in a box and neglected him for two days, despite the baby’s crying. The two then allegedly placed the baby in a trash bag and left him to die on the side of a road. COUNCIL BLUFFS – While some roads are reopening due to flooding, the same can’t be said for uses at Iowa waterways. The Des Moines Register reports Interstate 29 and 680 near Council Bluffs have partially reopened as flood waters begin to recede in western Iowa. Several U.S. Highways in northern Iowa are still closed. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have closed several boat ramps at Sailorville Lake in Polk County and beaches at Lake Red Rock near Pella.  

WEBSTER COUNTY – A teenager died in Fort Dodge in a single vehicle crash Tuesday. The Iowa State Patrol reports a Chevy Malibu driven by 16-year-old Leah Clare Lynch struck a tree. Lynch was declared dead on scene, and two other passengers, also teenagers, were inside the car. One of those teenagers was life flighted to a nearby hospital and another was unharmed. OTTUMWA – A juvenile riding a bike died when struck by a vehicle backing out of an alley in Ottumwa. The Iowa State Patrol reports a Dodge Ram driven by Eric Pilcher was leaving a residence and had forgotten an item while stopped. A juvenile on a bicycle rode up to the rear bumper of the vehicle, and police say was out of sight of the passenger’s side rear mirror. The ram proceeded to back out, hitting the young man on the bike. SAYLORVILLE – Activities on two of Iowa’s biggest lakes during the 4th of July are being discouraged as flood waters from northern Iowa rush down the Des Moines River. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had already closed several boat ramps and other areas of Saylorville Lake last week, and that this week, debris and rapidly rising waters are making it dangerous to boat. While the same advisory isn’t in place downstream, Lake Red Rock has closed its two recreational beaches as levels are expected to significantly increase in the coming days. PELLA – Several central Iowa communities were impacted by flash flooding as 4-6 inches of rain fall over portions of central Iowa Tuesday. The National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings in Madison, Warren, Marion, and Mahaska Counties after two rounds of precipitation dumped heavy rain during a first round in the morning and severe thunderstorms in the evening. Multiple tornado warnings were prompted well into eastern Iowa. Street flooding was reported widespread in Pella, stalling nearly a dozen cars.    

FAYETTE COUNTY – One person died in a two vehicle crash in Rural Waucoma on Monday. The Iowa State Patrol reports a Chevrolet S10 operated by 41-year-old Joshua Lee Quail was traveling on a gravel road and collided with a Ford Edge driven by 58-year-old Diana Lynn Mohls at an uncontrolled intersection. Quail, a resident of Waucoma, died from his injuries, and Mohlis received minor injuries. ADAIR – The former police chief in Adair will serve five years in prison for using his position in the department to purchase guns for personal use and sales in his gun store. Bradley Wendt knowingly lied on federal paperwork as it related to the use of the machine guns he purchased in 2022. He ended up selling most of the weapons he purchased under the guise of use for the three-man police department, including up to a week before he went on trial. Wendt will also have to pay a $50,000 fine. IOWA – John Deere is planning to lay off hundreds of Midwest employees, including those in Waterloo, Davenport, and Dubuque. WHO-13 reports the announcement comes after the company revealed plans to move Iowa-based operations to Mexico. Projections from John Deere show a forecasted downturn in ag industry profits.