Democrat Royceann Porter has won election to a vacant seat on the Johnson County Board of Supervisors in a special election on Tuesday.
Voters chose Porter over Hemingway by 5,444 votes to 4,167 votes, or a margin of 56 to 43 percent. Early and absentee votes favored Porter by a 70 to 30 percent margin. Hemingway won the majority of the vote in precincts in areas outside of Iowa City, Coralville, and North Liberty. Porter's strength in those urban areas, along with that early vote advantage, carried her to victory.
With her election, Porter becomes the first African-American to hold a Johnson County county-wide office. She received a high-profile video endorsement from Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) in early December.
9.98 percent of registered voters in Johnson County participated in Tuesday's special election.
The seat was formerly held by Kurt Friese, who passed away in October.