Elected Officials in the Des Moines Metro Region

The Des Moines metro region is governed by a layered network of elected officials operating across municipal, county, and special-district jurisdictions. Understanding who holds authority over which decisions — and how those officials relate to one another — is essential to interpreting how regional policy is made, how public funds are allocated, and how residents can hold government accountable. This page defines the scope of elected office in the metro, explains the structural mechanisms through which these officials operate, describes the most common governance scenarios, and identifies the boundaries that separate different levels of electoral authority.

Definition and scope

The Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, encompasses Polk, Dallas, Warren, Madison, Guthrie, and Jasper counties (U.S. Census Bureau, Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas). Within this geography, elected officials span at least 4 distinct governmental layers: city governments, county governments, school districts, and special-purpose districts such as the Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority.

At the municipal level, the City of Des Moines operates under a council-manager form of government, with a 5-member city council and a separately elected mayor. Smaller municipalities within the metro — including West Des Moines, Ankeny, Urbandale, Johnston, and Waukee — each maintain their own independently elected city councils, with council sizes that typically range from 5 to 7 members depending on population and home-rule charter provisions under Iowa Code Chapter 372 (Iowa Legislature, Iowa Code Chapter 372).

At the county level, each of the 6 counties in the MSA elects a Board of Supervisors. Polk County, which contains the City of Des Moines and holds the largest share of the metro's population of approximately 700,000 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census), operates a 5-member Board of Supervisors elected by district. The county attorney, county auditor, county recorder, county treasurer, and county sheriff are also independently elected positions in each county under Iowa Code Chapter 39.

School district governance adds another layer. The Des Moines Independent Community School District (DMCSD) is governed by a 7-member elected Board of Directors. The Ankeny, West Des Moines, Johnston, and Waukee community school districts each maintain their own independently elected boards, meaning that a resident in the metro may be a constituent of 4 or more separate elected bodies simultaneously.

A full structural map of how these governmental units interconnect is described in the Des Moines metro government structure reference, which situates elected offices within the broader administrative framework.

How it works

Elected officials in the Des Moines metro derive authority from Iowa state law, municipal home-rule charters, and — in the case of special districts — enabling statutes that define each board's jurisdiction. The mechanism works through 3 distinct tracks:

  1. General elections and municipal elections: City council and mayoral races are held in odd-numbered years under Iowa Code Chapter 376, with nonpartisan ballots. County officials are elected in even-numbered years on partisan ballots aligned with state and federal election cycles.
  2. School board elections: School board elections occur in September of odd-numbered years, governed by Iowa Code Chapter 277, and are conducted separately from municipal contests to reduce ballot complexity.
  3. Special district board elections: Bodies such as the Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) board are not directly elected by the public. DART's governance board is appointed by member governments, distinguishing it from purely elected structures. This distinction is significant: residents can influence DART governance only indirectly, through the elected officials who make those appointments.

Term lengths vary. Des Moines city council members serve 4-year staggered terms. Polk County supervisors serve 4-year terms. School board members typically serve 3-year terms under Iowa Code § 277.27.

Common scenarios

Three governance scenarios illustrate how elected officials in the metro exercise authority in practice:

Annexation and boundary disputes: When a municipality such as Ankeny or Waukee proposes to annex unincorporated land, the elected city council initiates the process under Iowa Code Chapter 368. The affected county board of supervisors may contest the annexation, creating a formal intergovernmental conflict resolved through the Iowa City Development Board. Residents in the proposed annexation area hold no direct vote in most voluntary annexation proceedings.

Budget adoption and property tax levies: Each elected body — city council, county board of supervisors, school board — independently sets a property tax levy within limits established by Iowa Code Chapter 384 (cities) and Chapter 444 (counties). In a single Polk County household, the combined levy may reflect contributions from the city, county, school district, and one or more special districts, each set by a separately elected board at separate public hearings.

Land use and zoning decisions: Zoning authority rests with city councils and, for unincorporated land, county boards of supervisors. The Des Moines metro zoning and land use page addresses this in detail. Elected officials approve comprehensive plan amendments and rezonings, often after recommendations from appointed planning commissions. Regional coordination on land use occurs through the Des Moines Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), whose policy board includes elected officials from member jurisdictions.

Decision boundaries

A precise understanding of what each class of elected official can and cannot decide prevents common misattributions of authority.

City vs. county authority: City councils govern land use, municipal services, and local ordinances within incorporated boundaries. County boards of supervisors hold authority over unincorporated areas and county-wide services such as the secondary road system and county health services. Once territory is incorporated, the city council — not the county board — controls zoning and development approvals within that boundary.

Elected vs. appointed governance: DART's policy board, the Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority board, and the Des Moines Water Works board are governed by appointed — not directly elected — members. Residents who are concerned about Des Moines metro public transit or Des Moines metro water utilities must engage the elected officials who make those appointments rather than pursuing direct electoral accountability with the boards themselves.

State preemption: Iowa state law preempts local elected authority in specific domains. For example, the Iowa Legislature has preempted municipal authority over minimum wage since 2017 (Iowa Code § 331.304A), nullifying local ordinances that Des Moines and Polk County had adopted. Elected metro officials cannot restore that authority without legislative action at the state level.

Regional planning without regional government: The metro has no single elected regional government. The Des Moines Area MPO coordinates transportation planning across the region, but its authority is advisory and its policy board derives legitimacy from member governments rather than a regional electorate. This is addressed further in Des Moines metro regional planning. The home page for this reference site provides orientation to all major topic areas, including additional detail on the Des Moines metro area overview that contextualizes how the metro's governance structure relates to its geographic and demographic profile.

References

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