WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A jury has convicted a Waterloo man of two crimes but acquitted him of a third in an accident that injured his girlfriend’s daughter. Black Hawk County court records say 53-year-old James Smith was found guilty Monday of serious injury by vehicle and of leaving the scene of the accident. He was found not guilty of child endangerment causing serious injury. The records don’t show a sentencing date. Police say the 11-year-old girl was injured April 18 when Smith drove out of the couple’s driveway in Waterloo.

The girl’s mother, 33-year-old Anita Nelson, told officers she didn’t know who struck the girl and denied Smith was involved. She’s pleaded not guilty to making a false report. The records say her trial is scheduled to begin Dec. 4.

A collision Monday afternoon in Stanton resulted in three people being transported to the hospital. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports the crash happened at around 12:10-p.m. near 106 Halland Avenue, in Stanton, when a 2017 Subaru traveling northbound on Halland Avenue and driven by Roxann Osher, of Stanton, slowed to make a right turn into a residential driveway. A 2007 Saturn Aura traveling behind Osher, and driven by Amanda L. Smith, of Red Oak, swerved to go around the Subaru to the right, and struck the right front Osher’s car.

After the vehicles made contact, Smith’s car continued north through the front yard of the residences on the east side of Halland Avenue, striking a driveway and coming to rest after hitting a power pole, which sheared-off. The pole, equipped with a light, struck the windshield of Smith’s Saturn. Smith was removed from her car by rescue personnel and transported to the Montgomery County Memorial Hospital, for treatment of possible broken bones. Two passengers in her vehicle, Brandon Frazier and Malakai Smith, were transported to MCMH to be checked-out, but were believed to have been uninjured. Osher was not hurt during the incident.

Damage to the vehicles amounted to $9,500. The power pole owned by Southwest Iowa REC, light fixture and transformer, sustained a combined $4,000 damage. An investigation involving chemical testing was being conducted to determine if Smith was under the influence. Authorities say charges will follow, if she was found to have been driving under the influence. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by the Stanton, and Red Oak Fire and Rescue Departments.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Democrats in Iowa are seeking to regain some power in Tuesday’s midterms after back-to-back elections that have seen the traditionally centrist state take a sharp turn to the right.
Republicans, meanwhile, are hoping to fend off challengers to maintain control of the governor’s office, the Legislature and the congressional delegation. GOP incumbents also hold three of Iowa’s four seats in the U.S. House, along with the secretary of state, the state auditor and the agriculture secretary.
GOVERNOR
The marquee race features Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and Democrat Fred Hubbell, who have been engaged in a competitive and expensive campaign.
Reynolds, the longtime lieutenant governor who was elevated to governor last year, is seeking a full four-year term as Iowa’s first female chief executive. Reynolds has told voters that Iowa is moving in the right direction and frequently touts its “No. 1 state” ranking by U.S. News and World Report.
Hubbell, a businessman and philanthropist from one of the state’s most prominent families, has sunk millions of his own money into his first run for public office. Hubbell argues that the state has gone too far to the right and is underfunding public education and mismanaging programs like Medicaid.
CONGRESSIONAL RACES
Iowa voters will decide the outcome of two of the most competitive congressional races in the nation, which could impact partisan control of the House.
In northeastern Iowa’s 1st Congressional District, Democratic state Rep. Abby Finkenauer is looking to oust Rep. Rod Blum, a Republican.
Finkenauer would become one of the youngest women in Congress if elected at age 29. Blum, a businessman and strong supporter of President Donald Trump, is seeking to overcome a House ethics investigation into one of his companies to win a third term.
In Iowa’s 3rd District, GOP Rep. David Young is also fighting for a third term. The former aide to Sen. Chuck Grassley has been locked in a tight race against Democrat Cindy Axne, a former state government official who has run on health care and agricultural issues.
Rep. Steve King is asking voters in conservative northwestern Iowa’s 4th District to give him his ninth term in Congress, despite his reputation for making inflammatory remarks about race and supporting far-right political movements. Democrat J.D. Scholten has been running an aggressive campaign, seeking an upset that appears unlikely but would reverberate nationally.
STATEWIDE RACES
Three other statewide races featuring GOP incumbents and relatively young Democratic challengers have been fiercely contested.
Deidre DeJear, 32, a former campaign organizer for President Barack Obama, looks to become the first black woman elected to statewide office in Iowa. She is challenging Republican Secretary of State Paul Pate, who championed the new voter identification law. DeJear argues the law disenfranchises many voters, while Pate says that it ensures election integrity.
In the auditor’s race, incumbent Mary Mosiman is hoping to get past a well-funded challenge by Democrat Rob Sand, a 36-year-old former prosecutor who argues that Mosiman has gone too easy on government corruption. Mosiman has argued that Sand isn’t qualified for the position because he’s not a certified public accountant.
Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig is seeking a full four-year term after his appointment in March. Naig, a Republican, has received backing from the Iowa Farm Bureau. He is running against Democrat Tim Gannon, a farmer and former USDA official.
LEGISLATURE
Voters gave Republicans large majorities in the 2016 election, and GOP lawmakers responded by approving laws that eliminated collective bargaining rights for most public workers, expanded gun rights, cut taxes and enacted the nation’s most restrictive abortion ban.
The Legislature also passed a requirement that voters show identification at the polls, but those without one Tuesday can cast ballots by signing an oath attesting to their identities.
Democrats will try to reduce the Republican majority, with the GOP holding 29 of 50 seats in the Senate and 58 of 100 House seats.

A traffic stop just before 1-a.m. today (Tuesday) on a vehicle being operated in an erratic manner, resulted in the arrest of a woman from Corning. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports Michelle Dixon was pulled over in Corning, near the intersection of 6th and Grove Streets. Upon further investigation, Dixon was arrested for OWI/1st offense, and cited for Open Container. Her bond was set at $1,300.

PRIMGHAR, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of driving recklessly has been given three years of probation in an all-terrain vehicle crash in northwest Iowa that killed his passenger. O’Brien County court records say 28-year-old Garrett Crowl also was given a deferred judgment at his hearing Monday in Primghar. A deferred judgment allows his conviction to be removed from court records if he completes his probation terms. Crowl had pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors lowered the charge from vehicular homicide when driving while intoxicated.

Investigators say Crowl was driving the ATV recklessly while under the influence of marijuana on July 30, 2016, when he lost control of it in a recreation area near Sheldon and crashed into a tree. His passenger, 25-year-old Shaleah Donavon, died.