Joshua Meggers
{{Short description|American politician (born 1980)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = Joshua Meggers
|image = Joshua Meggers.jpg
|state_house1 = Iowa
|district1 = 54th
|term_start1 = January 9, 2023
|term_end1 =
|predecessor1 = Shannon Latham (redistricting)
|successor1 =
|constituency1 = District 54 - (2023–present)
|birth_date = {{birth year and age|1980}}
|birth_place = Cedar Falls, Iowa, U.S.
|death_date =
|death_place =
|party = Republican
|spouse = Danielle
|children = 1
|education = Upper Iowa University
|occupation = State trooper
}}
Joshua Meggers (born 1980) is an American politician and police officer who has represented the 54th district in the Iowa House of Representatives since January 2023, which consists of Hardin and Grundy counties, as well as parts of western Black Hawk County. He is a member of the Republican Party.{{cite web |title=Joshua Meggers - Iowa Legislature |url=https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislators/legislator/legislatorAllYears?personID=33981 |website=Iowa Legislature |access-date= March 21, 2024}}
Early life
Meggers was born in 1980 in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and was raised in Buckingham, Iowa. He graduated from Hudson High School in 1999, and received a bachelor's degree in criminology from Upper Iowa University.
Political career
Following decennial redistricting in 2021, Meggers announced his bid to run for the open 54th district seat in the Iowa House of Representatives in January 2022.{{cite web |last1=Graham |first1=Darvin |title=Meggers making a run at open House 54 seat |url=https://www.sun-courier.com/news/local-news/2022/02/16/meggers-making-a-run-at-open-house-54-seat/ |website=Sun Courier |access-date= March 21, 2024}} He won the Republican primary on June 7, 2022, defeating Robert Nazario, a former merchant marine, by over 400 votes, and ran unopposed in the general election on November 8, winning with 98.5 percent of the vote. He assumed office on January 9, 2023.{{cite web |title=Joshua Meggers |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Joshua_Meggers |website=Ballotpedia |access-date= March 21, 2024 |language=en}}
Meggers endorsed Ron DeSantis for president in 2023.{{cite web |last1=Pfannenstiel |first1=Brianne |last2=Akin |first2=Katie |title=Ron DeSantis to bring Iowa endorsers to state fair in apparent dig at Donald Trump |url=https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2023/08/11/ron-desantis-to-bring-iowa-endorsers-to-state-fair-to-offset-trump/70577121007/ |website=The Des Moines Register |access-date=March 27, 2024}}
In 2024, Meggers filed to run for reelection.{{cite web |title=Area state legislature candidates file for June primary |url=https://www.timesrepublican.com/news/todays-news/2024/03/area-state-legislature-candidates-file-for-june-primary/ |website=Times Republican |access-date= March 23, 2024}} He defeated Jody Anderson, a former Iowa Falls city manager, by over 800 votes in the Republican primaries on June 4, 2024, and will again run unopposed in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Meggers is a member of the Agriculture, Public Safety, and Transportation committees, and was a member of the Economic Growth and Technology Committee until January 8, 2024.{{cite web |title=State Representative |url=https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislators/legislator?ga=90&personID=33981 |website=Iowa Legislature |access-date= March 21, 2024}}
Meggers has said that his priorities include public education, lowering corporate taxes and incentivizing recruitment for emergency service departments. He is a supporter of the Second Amendment.{{cite web |last1=Kuiper |first1=Maria |title=Two Republicans seek Iowa House District 54 spot on ballot |url=https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/two-republicans-seek-iowa-house-district-54-spot-on-ballot/article_a324c49e-29c8-549c-b2a6-49650ce3e89d.html |website=Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier |access-date= March 21, 2024 |language=en |date= June 2, 2022}}
Personal life
Meggers has served as a state trooper with the Iowa State Patrol since 2005, having previously served with the Belle Plaine Police Department. His wife Danielle is a sergeant for the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Office. They have one daughter. He resides with his family in Grundy Center, Iowa.
Electoral history
{{Compact election box no change begin}}
{{Compact election box no change
|election_title = Iowa House of Representatives Republican primary elections, 2022
|election_note = District 54
|turnout_votes = 3,039
|result = (newly redistricted)
|winner = Joshua Meggers
|winner_party = Republican Party of Iowa
|winner_votes = 1,736
|winner_percent = 57.1
|candidate2 = Robert Nazario
|candidate2_party = Republican Party of Iowa
|candidate2_votes = 1,297
|candidate2_percent = 42.7
|candidate3 = Other/Write-in votes
|candidate3_party =
|candidate3_votes = 6
|candidate3_percent = 0.2
}}
{{Compact election box no change
|election_title = Iowa House of Representatives general elections, 2022
|election_note = District 54
|turnout_votes = 10,958
|result = (newly redistricted)
|winner = Joshua Meggers
|winner_party = Republican Party of Iowa
|winner_votes = 10,799
|winner_percent = 98.5
|candidate2 = Other/Write-in votes
|candidate2_party =
|candidate2_votes = 159
|candidate2_percent = 1.5
}}
{{Compact election box no change end}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{Members of the Iowa House of Representatives}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meggers, Joshua}}
Category:Date of birth missing (living people)
Category:Republican Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives
Category:21st-century members of the Iowa General Assembly
Category:American state police officers
Category:People from Cedar Falls, Iowa
Category:People from Tama County, Iowa