Former President Donald Trump will hold a campaign rally in downtown Sioux City later this month.
The Trump event will be held in the Orpheum Theatre on Sunday, October 29. Doors will open at noon, the program will begin at 2 p.m., and the Republican former president is slated to speak at 3 p.m.
Trump won the presidential election in 2016 and was defeated by Joe Biden, a Democrat, in 2020. He is the polling leader among 2024 Republican candidates, amid a period in whichTrump has been charged with more than 90 felony crimes.
The most recent Republican presidential candidates to campaign in Sioux City were Nikki Haley on October 8 and Ron DeSantis on October 9.
In other election news, the November 7 election for Iowa electoral contests is three weeks off, and a key date in the Woodbury County timeline lands tomorrow on October 18.
Early voting begins Wednesday as county residents can cast ballots in the Woodbury County Courthouse in downtown Sioux City. That courthouse early voting option will continue weekdays through Monday, November 6, the day before the election.
In Sioux City, two city positions are being contested, with Mayor Bob Scott running unopposed by anyone on the ballot, while Julie Schoenherr and Tom Murphy vying for one seat on the Sioux City Council.
Additionally, 11 candidates are running for five positions on the Sioux City School Board. The Sioux City League of Women Voters and Siouxland GO groups sponsored a school board candidates forum on Monday, where 10 of the 11 candidates took part.
The candidates were asked about the most important issues facing the school district. Many of them agreed that improving special education and services for English language learners was vital, as well as the retention and recruitment of qualified teachers.
The candidates also voiced concerns about diversity and inclusion issues, plus student safety, on the heels of some lockdowns at North High School. Several cited the Career Academy for high school students as a beacon of the district’s newest additions in recent years.
Those who recently received the endorsement of the Sioux City Education Association labor group cited that benchmark, and those who have been endorsed include Semehar Ghebrekidan, Earl Miller, Treyla Lee, Lance Ehmcke, and Margo Cortez.
Siouxland Public Media will have more on the forum Wednesday on The Exchange by Mary Harnett.
Additionally, the Sioux City Council was asked Monday to approve a resolution opposing the construction and operation of hazardous CO2 pipelines in or near the city, but ultimately deferred action after some discussion of the topic.
The resolution was proposed at the request of council members and other people, but Councilman Alex Watters said more information is needed to better frame the issue before the council decides. The topic will be revisited tentatively on November 6.
Watters said he had questions on whether previous action by the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors opposing the pipeline would supersede anything the council may decide.
City Council meeting documents cited that research shows various possible negative outcomes should a pipeline be allowed. Those include health and safety issues, adverse effects on property values, and loss of future development opportunities for the properties.
The resolution the council is being asked to approve identifies the two CO2 pipelines, which are proposed to be constructed crossing the Missouri River as Summit Carbon Solutions turning north on the east side of Sioux City continuing into Plymouth County and Navigator Heartland Greenway continuing in a northeasterly direction towards Lawton.
The proposed city resolution states that "granting eminent domain for private companies sets a dangerous precedent" and that both routes are "dangerously close" to residences, business areas, and the Sioux Gateway Airport.
