Shall Scott J. Beattie be retained in office as a District 5C District Judge?
Source: electionresults.iowa.gov
What does this office do?
- Deciding trials in the county
- Ruling on evidence and setting sentences in criminal cases
- Deciding family, probate, and civil disputes
Affects: Public Safety and Crime Control, Criminal Justice and Civil Liberties, Housing Affordability,
Scott J. Beattie
Nonpartisan · Incumbent · Official site
Scott J. Beattie has been a district court judge in Polk County since 2018. Before that, he was a Navy lawyer, an assistant city attorney for Des Moines, and a partner at a Des Moines law firm.
Track record
Track record — General
General · 5 records
Dismissed Donald Trump's lawsuit against the Des Moines Register and pollster Ann Selzer over a 2024 Iowa Poll. He ruled the poll was speech protected by the First Amendment.
September 23, 2026
Source: iowapublicradio.org
The Iowa Supreme Court reversed his Finkenauer ballot ruling. It held that missing or wrong dates on petition signatures were not a legal reason to disqualify them.
April 15, 2022
Source: iowacourts.gov
Ruled that Abby Finkenauer lacked enough valid petition signatures and ordered her off the 2022 Democratic U.S. Senate primary ballot. He found state law required full compliance on signature dates.
April 10, 2022
Source: nbcnews.com
Voters in Polk County kept him as a district judge in the 2020 retention vote, with 70.3% voting yes (110,361 yes to 46,725 no).
November 3, 2020
Source: sos.iowa.gov
Governor Kim Reynolds appointed him a district court judge for Polk County (District 5C). He filled the seat of Judge Eliza Ovrom.
June 6, 2018
Source: businessrecord.com
Track record — Legal Competence
Legal Competence · 1 favorable
In the Iowa State Bar Association's 2020 lawyer survey, 100% of the 191 lawyers who rated him said he should be kept as a judge.
September 28, 2020Favorable on Legal Competence
Source: nebula.wsimg.com
Sources: polkcountyiowa.gov2