Shawn Ellerbroek

Shawn Ellerbroek was born in Cherokee, Iowa. Ellerbroek's professional experience includes working as a professor. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa in 1995 and a Ph.D. from Northwestern University in 2000.[1][2]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Shawn Ellerbroek brings his passion for education and community to his campaign for Iowa House of Representatives District 57. With over two decades of experience as a biochemistry professor, Ellerbroek is deeply committed to shaping policies that prioritize water quality, reduce cancer rates, produce a common-sense balanced state budget, protect and improve rural public education, and provide affordable and accessible healthcare for all Iowans.

Shawn is a life-long Iowan who has raised three children in Waverly with his wife, Angie. His service as President of the Waverly-Shell Rock School Board and career in cancer research give him a profound understanding of many of the key issues facing Iowans. The Shawn for Iowa platform emphasizes being present in the community, listening and inclusive governance, and evidence-based decision-making that fosters a brighter, more equitable future Iowans.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

There are two outstanding concerns about Iowa water: its poor quality and no understanding of how much or little of it exists under our feet. We are experiencing unprecedented concentrations of nitrates, PFAS, chemicals, and coliform bacteria in our waterways. These substances are polluting our drinking and recreational waters and likely contributing to our nation-leading rise in cancer rates. We need legislation that supports more inclusive rural water well surveillance and treatment, fully funds real-time water monitoring efforts to track safety and success of nutrient reduction efforts, requires water treatment facilities to create plans to protect municipal water supplies, and properly tracks and enforces waste management activity.As a cancer research scientist, I have been studying and fighting cancer for decades. Cancer often takes years to develop. Even if we magically mitigated cancer drivers today, high cancer rates will be with us for years to come. We cannot wait; future generations need action now. Unfortunately, the legislature has been slow to understand and respond, even proposing bills that protect the chemical companies. If elected, protecting Iowans, not big corporations, will be my priority.The legislature in Des Moines doesn’t have a plan to fix the damage they have accelerated the installment of a 3.8% flat tax. When combined with a nation-lagging economy, the result is a huge loss of income for the state and billion dollar deficits. The only reason this has not triggered default is Iowa is using its savings account to balance its ledger.

That savings account wasn’t built on over-taxing, it was a product of one-time federal stimulus money. And the surplus budget is being used faster than anticipated – meaning the state is heading towards a Kansas-size financial crisis. This means reduced support for schools, Medicaid, infrastructure, food assistance programs, and public safety. The services many Iowans depend on.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Health and Budget

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Native Iowan, College Professor, School Board member, community leader

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Iowa public school education is under attack. We need to properly fund and support public education, give teachers a reason to stay and work, and return to what we use to do well- leading the country in education.Access to healthcare is eroding. Privatization of Medicaid has led to less qualified for coverage and reduced claims. We are the only state with increasing cancer rates. We are second overall in cancer incidences. One third of Iowa counties lack an OB/GYN. Child mortality spiked 30% in 2022. We need to support access to abortion, empower physicians to work with their patients to make good evidence-based choices, clean our water, and incentivize rural health care programs that place physicians in the communities that need them the most.We do not have enough eldercare or daycare services. This negatively impacts the quality of life of our most vulnerable populations. It depresses our workforce as caregivers struggle to find time to work and contribute. It is well established that we are at the bottoms of the country in monitoring retirement homes. The state needs to come in, increase the pool of inspectors, incentivize new daycares and retirement homes, and provide school district more monetary support to run preschools.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Education, healthcare, and the environment

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Service above self.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The Iranian Hostage Crisis - and I was 7.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Bringing back bipartisanship.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

The idea of removing the State Auditor’s ability to do their job is a prime example of what not to do.