WEST DES MOINES, Iowa —

Voters in Clive, Windsor Heights and parts of West Des Moines are preparing to elect a new state senator in a race that has garnered national attention from Democrats following the death of Sen. Claire Celsi last month.

Over the weekend, Democratic candidate Renee Hardman, who serves on the West Des Moines City Council and is president and CEO of Lutheran Services in Iowa, rallied volunteers to go door-to-door to reach voters. Hardman said Celsi was a friend and inspired her to run for office. The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee has highlighted this special election as a high priority.

"We need to make sure that the Republicans don't get the supermajority back," said Donna Richard-Langer, a volunteer for Hardman’s campaign. "We worked hard in the othe

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