Sami Scheetz

Early life and education Scheetz was born on April 30, 1996, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where he was raised. His mother, a teacher, immigrated to the United States from Damascus, Syria, while his father is a lawyer. He graduated from Washington High School and received a bachelor's degree in government and history from Georgetown University.

Political career Scheetz announced his candidacy for the 39th district of the Iowa Senate in June 2021. He withdrew weeks later upon Liz Bennett's entrance into the race and instead ran for the 78th district of the Iowa House of Representatives. He won the Democratic primaries unopposed on June 7, 2022, and defeated Republican Anne Fairchild in the general election on November 8 by over 3,700 votes, becoming the first Arab American to serve in the Iowa Legislature.

In 2024, Scheetz filed to run for reelection. He won the Democratic primaries unopposed on June 4, 2024, and ran unopposed in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Scheetz has said that his priorities include education, healthcare, and workers' rights. He supports making community college free and legalizing marijuana. He does not support the use of eminent domain for the construction of CO2 pipelines. He is pro-choice.

Scheetz previously worked with the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign, Fred Hubbell's 2018 campaign for governor, and Michael Franken's 2022 campaign for US senator.

Personal life Scheetz resides in Cedar Rapids with his wife and daughter. He is a union organizer for Teamsters Local 238.

Electoral history