Sharon DeGraw, a candidate for the vacant Iowa City City Council District C seat, recently announced that she would be dropping out of the race entirely.
The announcement came from a social media post, where DeGraw stated she was suspending her campaign “due to a personal matter.”
This comes a little over a week before the primary election, which is set to take place on Feb. 4.
Weeks ago, DeGraw said that she was excited to run for Iowa City City Council and was inspired by attending city council planning and zoning commission meetings and speaking on behalf of Northside residents.
DeGraw’s top priorities were advocating for affordable housing, women and vulnerable communities, a vibrant, inclusive city, and a balance between development and sustainability.
The primary election was scheduled in addition to a later special election, which would have narrowed the race to two candidates of the three who are running. Despite the change, the primary election will still take place, as it is too late to reprint ballots with DeGraw’s name removed.
The city has already spent a total of $100,000 on both the primary and special elections, a cost that will remain as the ballots and DeGraw’s presence in the election cannot be rescinded.
The remaining candidates, Ross Nusser and Oliver Weilein, continue to campaign and will still be on the ballots.