Renee Hardman

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Wikipedia

Renee Hardman
Member of the Iowa Senate
from the 16th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 12, 2026
Preceded byClaire Celsi
Personal details
Born1960 or 1961 (age 64–65)
PartyDemocratic
ResidenceWest Des Moines, Iowa
EducationDrake University (BA, MBA)

Cherry Renee Hardman[1] (born 1960 or 1961)[2] is an American nonprofit executive and politician who is a member of the Iowa Senate from the 16th district. A Democrat, she won a special election to the Iowa Senate in December 2025.[3] Hardman is currently the president and CEO of Lutheran Services in Iowa and served as a member of the West Des Moines city council from 2017 until 2026.[4]

Early life and career

Hardman was raised by a single mother in Macon, Georgia and Maywood, Illinois. She graduated from Drake University with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology in 1983 and a Master of Business Administration in 1987.[5] She is an alumnae of Delta Sigma Theta.[6]

Upon graduating, Hardman worked at social services organization Mainstream Living from 1983 until 1987 and then for the state of Iowa until 1994 as a training officer until joining the human services department of Bankers Trust in 1996.[7][5] She left the company in 2013 as senior vice president of human services and founded human resources consulting firm Hardman Consulting.[8] Hardman was inducted into the Iowa Women's Hall of Fame in 2014.[9] In July 2018, she was named CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Iowa.[10] Broadlawns Medical Center in Des Moines announced Hardman as its president of human resources and chief diversity officer in April 2022.[11] In January 2024, she was appointed president and CEO of Lutheran Services in Iowa.[12]

Additionally, Hardman served as a Des Moines University trustee from 2001 to 2017.[2]

Political career

West Des Moines City Council

In November 2017, Hardman defeated incumbent at-large West Des Moines city councilmember Rick Messerschmidt by 70 votes.[13] Her election marked the first time a Black woman was elected to the city's council.[14] She listed addressing affordable housing, working with West Des Moines schools to promote diversity, and passing a welcoming city ordinance as priorities at her swearing-in.[8] She was re-elected to a second term with 96% of the vote in November 2021.[15]

Hardman pushed the council to unanimously end the city's private security contract with The Conley Group in August 2021 after a The Des Moines Register article exposed insensitive comments made by the firm's owner, Tom Conley, amidst the George Floyd protests. He then sued the city and its council for alleged defamation, tortious interference, and retaliation, and claiming his First Amendment rights were violated. The lawsuit was dismissed by a district court in March 2024 but Conley appealed the decision, leading to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit to reverse the motion to dismiss the retaliation and tortious interference claims in November 2025.[1]

Hardman resigned her seat on January 5, 2026, and a special election to replace her will be held on February 17, 2026.[4]

Iowa Senate

In October 2025, Hardman was selected as the Iowa Democratic Party's nominee for the December 30th special election to replace Claire Celsi, who died while in hospice.[16] The election garnered attention as a Republican win would restore the party's supermajority in the chamber, which it lost following two other special elections held that year, albeit the district leans Democratic and Kamala Harris received about 58% of the district's vote in the 2024 presidential election.[3][17] Hardman defeated Republican nominee Lucas Loftin on election night, becoming the first Black woman elected to the Iowa Senate.[3]

She was sworn in on January 12, 2026.[4]

Electoral history

2025

2025 Iowa Senate District 16 special election[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Renee Hardman 7,341 71.40% +1.94%
Republican Lucas Lifton 2,930 28.50% New
Write-in 11 0.11% –0.84
Total votes 10,282 100.00%
Democratic hold

References

  1. 1 2 Kauffman, Clark (November 5, 2025). "Appeals court revives lawsuit against city alleging First Amendment retaliation". Iowa Capital Dispatch. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Meet Renee Hardman, West Des Moines City Council candidate". The Des Moines Register. October 30, 2017. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 Fingerhut, Hannah; Schoenbaum, Hannah (December 30, 2025). "Democrat Renee Hardman wins Iowa state Senate special election". Associated Press. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 Wente, Rachel (January 6, 2026). "Special election called to fill at-large West Des Moines City Council seat". WOI-DT. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Ten honored as Women of Influence". Business Record. August 1, 2004. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  6. ↑ Majumdar, Nirmalendu (April 4, 2022). "Photos: Iowa State NPHC Plaza dedication honors Black fraternities and sororities". Ames Tribune. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  7. ↑ "A Journey of Grace and Grit". dsm Magazine. March 9, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Norvell, Kim (December 29, 2017). "West Des Moines' first black councilwoman aims to shine light on city's diversity". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Iowa Women's Hall of Fame gains 4 inductees". The Des Moines Register. August 2, 2014. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  10. ↑ "One-Time 'Big Sister of the Year' Becomes Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Iowa CEO". Greater Des Moines Partnership. July 17, 2018. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Iowa CEO steps down for role at Broadlawns". WOI-DT. April 8, 2022. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  12. ↑ "Renee Hardman named Lutheran Services in Iowa president, CEO". Business Record. January 12, 2024. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  13. ↑ Norvell, Kim (November 7, 2017). "Renee Hardman unseats incumbent for West Des Moines at-large seat". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  14. ↑ Spigner, Rheya (November 7, 2019). "WDM's first black city councilwoman leads through community service". KCCI-TV. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  15. ↑ LeBlanc, Sarah Kay. "West Des Moines elects Russ Trimble as mayor, three others to City Council seats". The Des Moines Register.
  16. ↑ Swenson, Mack (October 21, 2025). "Iowa Democrats nominate Renee Hardman for Senate District 16 special election". WOI-DT. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  17. ↑ "AP Decision Notes: What to expect in Iowa's state Senate special election". The Washington Post. December 29, 2025. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
  18. ↑ "State Senate District 16 To Fill a Vacancy". Iowa Secretary of State. Retrieved 10 December 2025.