Meet Julia Helm, who is running for Dallas County Board of Supervisors to represent Waukee

Dallas County Auditor Julia Helm is seeking to make a switch to serve on the Dallas County Board of Supervisors.

Helm is running unopposed as a Republican in District 2, representing Waukee, Adel and Dallas Center. Current Supervisor Mark Hanson is running for Iowa Senate.

To help voters, the Des Moines Register sent questions to all federal, Des Moines area legislative and local candidates running for political office this year. Their answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.

The primary election is scheduled for June 4 ahead of the Nov. 5 general election.

More: Early voting has started for Iowa's June 4 primary election. Here's what you should know:

Who is Julia Helm?

Age: 54

Party: Republican

Current town of residence: Adel

Education: Bachelor of Arts in public relations and Master of Arts in communication studies from UNI

Occupation: Dallas County Auditor and Commissioner of Elections

Political experience and civic activities: Became DC Auditor in 2017 and then was re-elected in 2020

Why are you running?

Helm: I love living in Dallas County, and I want to use my 15 years’ experience in the Auditor’s Office (eight of those years as county auditor) to help my county move into the future. I will be engaged, and propose that the supervisors’ meetings be available to the public online. This is the time in my career to move into a leadership position in the county.

What is the most important issue facing Dallas County and how would you address it in office?

Helm: Managing growth is the most important issue in Dallas County. I acknowledge that the word growth is sometimes overused when referring to Dallas County. However, the census numbers speak for themselves. In1990 there were 29,755 residents and in 2020 there were 99,678. The first thing is to start listening by having regular office hours. The way we start to balance providing services and regulating costs is understanding how legislation and inflation affect how departments provide service and the impact to their budgets. Also, having open communication and cooperation with cities and businesses in Dallas County.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Meet the candidate for Dallas County supervisor for Waukee, Adel