
Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re left or right – you’re drinking the water, you have a family member who’s got cancer, we all have. … We have to solve it.” — Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn on the need to address cancer in Iowa.

The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing oversees restaurant inspections in Iowa. (Photo via Getty Images; DIAL logo courtesy of Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing)
State, city and county inspectors have cited Iowa restaurants and stores for hundreds of food-safety violations during the past several weeks, including unsanitary kitchens, rodent droppings, long-expired food and buffets with food served at unsafe temperatures.
At least two restaurants temporarily closed due to the issues reported by inspectors.

Drake University has selected faculty member Jerry Anderson to serve as interim dean of its law school. (Photo courtesy of Drake University)
The interim dean of Drake University’s law school said the institution is in the process of finding both a permanent replacement for the former dean and the leader of one of its clinics as students come back to campus.
Jerry Anderson stepped back into the role of Drake Law dean this month following the announcement that then-dean Roscoe Jones would step down. Anderson will remain in the position, which he also served in from 2016 to 2024, until a national search has yielded a new dean.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn said Tuesday that Iowa’s cancer crisis was one the reasons he entered the race and said regardless of party, it’s a problem that has to be solved.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand did more listening than talking Tuesday during a meeting with members of Iowa’s ethanol industry at Lincolnway Energy in Nevada.
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship announced Tuesday an expansion of a popular cost-share conservation program that helps farmers convert cropland to pasture.
Violent crime in the United States fell by an estimated 9.3% in 2025, marking the largest year-to-year decline in the national violent crime rate since the FBI began estimating crime in 1936, according to new national data, Stateline reports.
The number of refugees admitted to the United States during the first 10 months of the fiscal year is on pace to hit its lowest level on record, according to a new analysis, Stateline reports.
Historic preservationists asked the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday to deny President Donald Trump’s appeal to continue construction on his $400 million White House ballroom on the grounds of the demolished East Wing.
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