A federal judge has opened the doors of Iowa's state Capitol to Satanists seeking to host a controversial holiday celebration, overruling years of opposition from Republican leaders.
The ruling, handed down Monday, clears the local Satanic Temple to hold its one-day event inside the statehouse this December after officials repeatedly rejected its applications.
For years, Republican leaders in the state House and Senate have argued that the group's proposed displays violate rules banning excessive violence and obscene material.
But it was the organization's planned costume contest that drew particular scrutiny from state officials.
The event was set to feature Krampus, the folkloric Christmas demon, whose costume would involve carrying bundles of sticks.
The state's Department of Administrative Services warned the props could potentially 'harm children' or be used as weapons against them.
'No more marketing to children,' Adam Steen, the department's former director, said when the application was rejected in 2024.
'No more trying to get them to create Satanic symbols, sing Satanic hymns, partake in Satanic rituals,' he added. 'No more having youth involved in costume contests and defending weapons used to abuse youth.'
A federal judge opened the doors of Iowa's state Capitol (pictured) to Satanists seeking to host a controversial holiday celebration, overruling years of opposition from Republican leaders
The ruling, handed down Monday, clears the local Satanic Temple to hold its one-day event inside the statehouse this December after officials repeatedly rejected its applications (display pictured)
The years-long feud reached a boiling point in August, when The Satanic Temple filed a lawsuit against Iowa Department of Administrative Services director Mark Campbell, his predecessor Adam Steen and the department itself
But the years-long feud reached a boiling point in August, when The Satanic Temple filed a lawsuit against Iowa Department of Administrative Services director Mark Campbell, his predecessor Adam Steen and the department itself.
In its lawsuit, reviewed by the Daily Mail, the group accused Iowa officials of a years-long campaign of religious discrimination, alleging they repeatedly shut down its holiday event while giving other religious organizations the green light to hold theirs.
The organization built its case around free speech protections, arguing that Iowa officials had violated both its constitutional rights and state law.
Despite its name, the Satanic Temple, which was founded in Salem, Massachusetts, in 2013, says it does not worship or believe in Satan, whom it uses as a symbol of personal liberty, religious pluralism and opposition to authoritarianism.
According to its website, it identifies as a 'non-theistic religious organization' dedicated to promoting secularism and keeping church and state separate.
On Monday, Chief District Judge Stephanie Rose cleared the way for December's event to go ahead, ruling that the Satanic Temple was likely to prevail in its free speech claim.
She brushed aside the state's concerns about Krampus, the Christmas-season figure who punishes misbehaving children, ruling that the possibility of scaring youngsters was not a valid basis for denying the event.
'Excluding Krampus costumes because they might frighten children, while admitting the season's celebratory displays, targets a perspective on the holiday rather than the holiday itself,' she wrote.
Chief District Judge Stephanie Rose (pictured) cleared the way for December's event to go ahead, ruling that the Satanic Temple was likely to prevail in its free speech claim
Despite its name, the Satanic Temple, which was founded in Salem, Massachusetts, in 2013, says it does not worship or believe in Satan, whom it uses as a symbol of personal liberty, religious pluralism and opposition to authoritarianism
In a statement following the ruling, Shefali Aurora (pictured), ACLU of Iowa staff attorney, said: 'State officials have made it clear that they denied TST permission to hold events in the Capitol rotunda because they disagreed with their religious viewpoint'
The judge ordered state officials to sign off on the December 12 gathering within seven days, setting the stage for a holiday spectacle featuring costumed Krampus characters, caroling, children's coloring activities and ornament-making
The judge ordered state officials to sign off on the December 12 gathering within seven days, setting the stage for a holiday spectacle featuring costumed Krampus characters, caroling, children's coloring activities and ornament-making.
In a statement following the ruling, Shefali Aurora, ACLU of Iowa staff attorney, said: 'State officials have made it clear that they denied TST permission to hold events in the Capitol rotunda because they disagreed with their religious viewpoint.'
'It is a foundational principle that the government cannot restrict speech in this way, favor one religion over another, or discriminate against religious groups because they don't agree with them,' she added.
In a separate statement, Matt Kezhaya, the Satanic Temple's general counsel, insisted the event was 'always going to be a family-friendly' affair.
'None of this became "harmful" just because state officials disapproved of our chosen expression,' he wrote.
But the legal battle is far from over, with the Iowa Attorney General's Office announcing plans to 'immediately' appeal Rose's ruling, arguing the event is inappropriate for a public space where young children are welcome.
'Families with young children visit the Capitol regularly, especially over the holiday season. The State of Iowa wants the Capitol complex to be safe and welcoming for those kids,' Jen Green, a spokesperson for Attorney General Brenna Bird, said in a statement, The Guardian reported.
The Satanic Temple is also seeking a permanent injunction and monetary damages over what it alleges were violations of its rights.
However, the recent dispute is not the first time the organization's holiday displays have sparked controversy at the Iowa Capitol.
In December 2023, the group erected an installation featuring Baphomet, a goat-headed figure associated with occult imagery, only for it to be vandalized by a man who had traveled from Mississippi.
At the time, Republican Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds slammed the display as 'absolutely objectionable,' urging residents to pray over the Capitol and turn their focus to the nativity scene featured alongside it.
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