IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Republican groups are asking the Iowa Supreme Court to stay a judge’s ruling that blocked enforcement of a state order that’s been used to invalidate tens of thousands of absentee ballot requests. The Republican National Committee, President Trump’s reelection campaign and other GOP groups said in a court filing that Iowa’s election administration could be thrown into “chaos” if the ruling stands.

At issue is a Monday ruling by Judge Robert Hanson blocking Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate from enforcing a directive that required counties to mail blank absentee ballot applications to voters instead of ones pre-filled with their personal information. Hanson found the directive would harm the public’s interest in making absentee voting as easy as possible.

PALO, Iowa (AP) — Authorities in eastern Iowa say two people have died in a crash involving three vehicles, including a semitrailer. The Linn County Sheriff’s Office says in a news release that the crash happened around 2:30 p.m. Monday at a rural intersection several miles south of Palo. Deputies who first arrived on the scene found that the semi, a car and a pickup truck had collided, and the semi was engulfed in flames.

Investigators say the driver of the semi was pulled from the burning wreckage by passing motorists and was flown to a nearby hospital. The drivers of the car and pickup were declared dead at the scene. Authorities had not released their names by late Tuesday morning.

(Radio Iowa) – An advisory board Governor Reynolds assembled in mid-June is making 56 recommendations for jump-starting Iowa’s economic recovery from the pandemic. The board’s top recommendation is for the state to take steps to make child care more affordable and accessible. The group ranks universal broadband access and increasing the supply of affordable housing as other top priorities. The board, which had its final meeting this (Tuesday) morning, was led by Ben McLean, the C-E-O of Ruan Transportation Management Systems in Des Moines.

Governor Kim Reynolds says the group’s report will serve as the foundation for her 2021 legislative agenda.

Nick Bowdish, President and C-E-O of Elite Octane in Atlantic, was one of 13 business executives to serve on the panel.

The advisory board approved its list of recommendations today (Tuesday). Its final report will be drafted by the end of the month.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A Nebraska woman has pleaded guilty to a reduced murder charge in the 2018 stabbing death of another woman in northwest Iowa. The Sioux City Journal reports that 22-year-old Melissa Camargo-Flores, of Dakota City, Nebraska, pleaded guilty Friday to second-degree murder in the death of 24-year-old Kenia Alvarez-Flores in Sioux City on April 8, 2018. Camargo-Flores had faced a first-degree murder charge and the possibility of life in prison before the plea deal.

Camargo-Flores admitted stabbing Alvarez-Flores. Prosecutors say she had been romantically involved with the victim’s boyfriend. Camargo-Flores now faces up to 50 years in prison when she’s sentenced on Oct. 29.

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The Harlan Police Department is trying to locate Kevin Clark. The man left home without his medication. Additional information was not immediately available.  If you see a man matching the picture shown, or know where he is, please call the Harlan Police Department at 712-755-5151.

Kevin Clark

A man from Red Oak complained of pain and possible injury, Monday, after he was hit by an SUV while attempting to cross the street. Red Oak Police say a 2018 Chevy Equinox driven by 67-year old Charla Ann Schmid, of Red Oak, was stopped at the controlled intersection of Alix Avenue  and N. Broadway, and was in the process of turning left onto N. Broadway, when her vehicle struck 58-year old Kenneth Murray Houser, who was on the west side of the intersection before he began to cross the street. The accident happened at around 1:10-p.m.

Schmid told police she looked both ways and did not see any cars coming, prior to pulling away from the intersection. Her SUV knocked Houser to the ground during the incident. He was transported to the Montgomery County Memorial Hospital by Red Oak Rescue, to be checked out. No citations were issued.