Hudson Mayor Pro Tem Matt Reisetter, center, speaks to delegates during the Republican Party of Iowa’s special nominating convention held Wednesday, July 22, in La Porte City. During the convention, Reisetter defeated Gilbertville Mayor Scott Becker to replace Rep. Derek Wulf (R-Hudson) on the general election ballot this November. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

LA PORTE CITY – In the wake of state Rep. Derek Wulf’s selection to run for lieutenant governor alongside gubernatorial nominee Zach Lahn on the Republican ticket this fall, local GOP central committee members convened last week to nominate Wulf’s replacement – settling on Hudson Mayor Pro Tem Matt Reisetter.

“Matt Reisetter is the right person to step up and lead for House District 76,” Rep. Wulf said in a statement provided to the newspaper following Reisetter’s selection during a special nominating convention held Wednesday, July 22, at the La Porte City Community Center. “Having served our area, I know how critical it is to have a representative in Des Moines who listens first and puts the people’s priorities above politics. Matt has the integrity, vision, and deep commitment to our conservative values needed to champion our farmers, support strong families, and ensure our rural communities continue to thrive. I am proud to endorse Matt and know he will be a strong, effective voice for HD 76 in the Iowa House.”

As the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, Wulf by law cannot run in tandem for reelection to the Iowa House as part of the Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026 general election. Wulf’s district encompasses northeast Tama County – including Dysart and Traer – as well Mt. Auburn, Hudson, La Porte City, Gilbertville, Evansdale, Elk Run Heights, and much of Cedar Falls, along with surrounding rural portions of Tama, Benton, and Black Hawk counties.

Delegates nominate two

Just after 6:30 p.m. Wednesday evening, state Rep. Dean Fisher (R-Montour) called the special nominating convention to order. Eleven of 12 eligible delegates participated, including two from Traer; four from Dysart; one from Benton County; two from Waterloo; one from Hudson; and one from Gilbertville.

State Rep. Dean Fisher (R-Montour) opens the convention as temporary chair. He was swiftly made chair of the special nominating convention. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

Two candidates were put forward that evening to replace Wulf, including Gilbertville Mayor Scott Becker who was nominated by Moe McWhirter of Traer, and Reisetter (pronounced “REE-ster”) who was nominated by Nancy Yuska of Dysart. The two candidates were then given five minutes each to address the room.

Becker, 65, took the floor first, describing himself as a lifelong Gilbertville resident. He was elected mayor after spending 22 years on the City Council. “I’m very active in my church and then the school in town,” he said, referencing the Bosco Catholic School System. “I used to be a coach back in the old days, but currently do internet and radio broadcasting for sporting events.”

Despite spending his whole life living in town, Becker told the delegates his background does include agriculture.

“During the ’70s, my dad farmed my grandpa’s farm operation. So even though I lived in town, I spent a lot of time on the farm. I did all the normal chores … I was involved from the time I was seven until I was 18 years old.”

Now retired, Becker graduated from Wartburg College before spending 17 years as a grain manager and licensed commodity broker. He briefly worked for Bertch Cabinet before finishing his career as an ag and commercial lender.

Gilbertville Mayor Scott Becker makes his pitch to the delegates. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

Political issues of concern for Becker include Iowa’s water quality coupled with the state’s rising cancer rates. He also mentioned property taxes.

“The property tax legislation that was passed this year is going to have an unknown effect on the small towns and rural areas, but that is something we’ve got to take a look at … maybe the out-of-state landowners pay a different tax rate or something like that. Just some ideas that I had.”

He also touched on how Iowa used to be top-5 or top-10 in the nation for its education system and that it concerns him how far the state’s rankings have fallen in recent years.

“I’m conservative. I’m a good Christian. I believe in common sense. I’m very analytical,” he further said.

Before running out of time, Becker ended with, “I believe that I’m the best candidate for Iowa House 76 (due to) my background in ag, banking and finance, small city government as well as in the urban government. No conflicts with my time. All my commitments are to volunteer groups. Once again, I hate talking about myself, but I do think I’m the best candidate for this position. Thank you for your consideration.”

Reisetter takes his turn speaking to the delegates. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

Reisetter’s background

During Reisetter’s five minutes, he began by assuring the delegates Becker would have his support no matter the outcome. He then spoke on the importance of being involved in local politics.

“If you ever want proof that it pays to be involved in your central committee, this nominating convention is proof of that,” he said before quickly transitioning to his biography.

“I am not going to talk about issues, and I’m not going to tell you a whole lot about myself because I provided information (to all the delegates) over the last couple weeks. I’ve sat down across the table with most of you – giving you the chance to ask questions.”

One issue Reisetter did touch on was water quality.

Delegate ballots are tallied. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

“I do agree with Scott that water quality is an issue,” he said. “We just want to stay away from mandates for sure. … That’s a hot-button issue, we got to be careful about that.”

According to a candidate biography provided to the newspaper, Reisetter, 50, was born and raised in Cedar Falls, graduating from Cedar Falls High School in 1994 and then from the University of Northern Iowa in 1998, earning a bachelor’s degree in general science. He also holds a master’s in transformational leadership from Bethel University. According to a September 2022 episode of the Reisetter Family Podcast, after graduating from UNI, Reisetter attended Luther Seminary in St. Paul for one year before leaving because of what he described as “serious concerns” with some of the teachings at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) seminary.

Reisetter and his wife Jen have been married for more than a quarter century and have four children, including two in college and two who are homeschooled while playing sports for Cedar Ridge Christian School.

Reisetter co-owns Crossroads Fireworks, a network of brick-and-mortar stores in Iowa. He is the executive director of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Christian Crusaders, a radio and internet ministry where he hosts a podcast. He is also the director of the Cedar Falls Bible Conference and part-time discipleship director at Nazareth Lutheran Church, Cedar Falls. Reisetter was previously head boys basketball coach at Cedar Ridge Christian; he is currently the school’s head girls basketball coach.

Reisetter’s biography also contains a lengthy summary of his political experiences, starting with how he “dressed up as an elephant in third grade and carried a ‘Vote Reagan’ sign at the school Halloween party.” In 1994, he lobbied the Iowa Legislature “for parental notification with regard to abortion.”

Following high school, Reisetter volunteered for and supported many state and national Republican campaigns, including George W. Bush during both his 2000 campaign for president and subsequent reelection campaign.

Reisetter unsuccessfully ran for Iowa House in 2006 and for Iowa Senate in 2012. He is currently in his third term as a member of the Hudson City Council.

‘Gaping hole of ag’

During his speech to the delegates, Reisetter acknowledged his bio has a “big gaping hole” when it comes to agriculture.

“Ag is the cornerstone or basically the epicenter of this district – and I understand that. It’s one of the reasons I got down to most of your farms. … I’ve learned a ton already,” Reisetter, dressed more like a grown-up Alex P. Keaton than the cowboy hat-wearing rancher Wulf, said.

“My answer to the gaping hole of ag in my bio – or, in my strengths – is I’ve already developed some great relationships with some of you guys, and I’m going to lean heavily on you … and others to keep me informed and abreast of that.” He then thanked Dysart resident and Benton County farmer Al Schafbuch for a copy of the Farm Bureau policy book.

“I will be proud to serve ag interests in this district,” Reisetter added. “I was surprised to learn that Dysart, (on a) pound-per-pound basis in this district, is kind of the epicenter of the district, and so we’re going to spend a lot of time down there.”

Before closing out his remarks, Reisetter displayed a print-out map of the district, pointing out where he lives and where Becker lives.

“I would make the case, with all due respect to Mr. Becker, Jeff Frost is the (Republican) candidate for Black Hawk County Supervisors (District 1), and Jeff is going to turn out Gilbertville and that part of the district very well. And I assume that Mr. Becker would as well (but) it just doesn’t make sense to me that we have redundancy – two guys from Gilbertville right here – when we’ve got the opportunity to nominate somebody from Hudson with ties to Cedar Falls and who has already started to run a rut in the road down in Tama County.”

Delegates vote

Prior to voting, delegate McWhirter asked if anyone could “expound on the Democratic nominee” for House District 76. Reisetter spoke up.

“His name is Calvin Horn. His website says … he wants to advance Iowa through science, equality, and responsibility – which I have no idea what that means,” Reisetter said before later adding, “My assumption is, the Democrats were assuming that Derek Wulf would be the candidate … And my assumption is that they just threw a guy up who they expected to have no chance to win.”

The newspaper profiled Horn ahead of the June 2026 primary election. Born and raised in Cedar Falls, Horn, 68, has been a resident of Elk Run Heights since 1999. His family includes his wife, son, daughter-in-law, and three grandchildren. After graduating from Cedar Falls High School in 1976, he spent roughly four years at UNI as an undeclared major studying STEM. Horn is retired from residential rental property management.

At one point during the discussion, McWhirter asked state Sen. Dave Sires (R-Cedar Falls) whether he was familiar with Horn. Sires, in attendance as an observer, replied, “I do, we’re going to beat him very badly,” eliciting laughter and applause from the room.

As chair of the convention, Rep. Fisher then got down to business. Delegates were asked to write their preferred candidate on the first ballot slip and return for tallying. The votes were then weighted based on 2024 voter turnout, but ultimately such weighting proved moot as Reisetter ran away with the vote on the first round, defeating Becker 9-2. A simple majority was needed to win.

According to Tama County Auditor Karen Rohrs, the Republican Party of Iowa must file a convention certificate with the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office by Wednesday, Aug. 19, to fill Wulf’s vacancy.

As the Republican nominee for House District 76, Reisetter will face Horn in the upcoming general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3.