Articles Tagged: Election 2026

At a town hall Thursday, Democratic State Auditor Rob Sand was pressed to define how he would protect transgender Iowans’ rights — drawing the sharpest exchanges of the evening and setting the tone for a wide-ranging discussion on water quality, education, school vouchers, mental health and child care.

Iowa will now have open-seat elections for governor and the U.S. Senate for the first time in nearly six decades, and half of the state’s federal delegation likely will feature new representation after the 2026 elections.

How does Joni Ernst’s decision to not seek reelection impact Iowa’s 2026 elections?

Iowa state Sen. Charlie McClintock announced Thursday he will run for the open 2nd Congressional District seat in northeast Iowa, setting up what is expected to be a crowded Republican primary.

Also, state legislator Dave Jacoby endorses Zach Wahls in Democratic U.S. Senate race

U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, an Iraq War combat veteran and Iowa’s first woman elected to Congress, is expected to announce next month she will not seek reelection, leaving another hole in an Iowa seat that could have ripple effects down the ballot as Democrats look to the state for pickup opportunities.

This week on the podcast: Catelin Drey wins Western Iowa special election. Plus, highlights from Ashley Hinson’s annual fundraiser and Bernie Sanders in the Quad Cities.

Also in the notebook, a union group endorses Democratic Iowa attorney general candidate Nate Willems

This week on the podcast, we’ll talk about candidates entering and exiting races and last weekend’s story about the new approach some Iowa Democrats are using on the campaign trail. Plus, a special election in Western Iowa for a seat in the Iowa Legislature.

Former Iowa Department of Administrative Services director and Republican Adam Steen said his goal to live in preparation of higher levels of leadership so that the “lord would be exalted” is what drove him to announce a run for governor.

Rivals no more, the two Iowa legislators hit the campaign trail together with an event in Council Bluffs.

U.S. Senate candidate Zach Wahls, a state legislator from Coralville, is connecting with union workers and reaffirming his support for the federal PRO Act and expanded labor rights as he looks to distinguish himself ahead of the Democratic primary election next summer.

More than 2,000 fairgoers participated in the nonscientific straw poll conducted by the Iowa Secretary of State’s office

J.D. Scholten is dropping out of the crowded Democratic primary in Iowa’s U.S. Senate election, and endorsing fellow Democratic state legislator Josh Turek, who just announced his candidacy this past week.

Iowa Democrats’ campaign speeches sound different this year as the party attempts to win back voters they have lost in the state over the past decade.