116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Campaign Almanac: J.D. Scholten announces he will not seek re-election to Iowa Legislature
Also in the almanac, another Republican state legislator endorses Brad Sherman for governor
The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
J.D. Scholten says he did not think he would still be in politics nearly a decade after one of the most intensely covered Iowa congressional races in recent history.
Scholten, a state legislator from Sioux City, announced this week that he will not seek re-election to the Iowa House this year. He is currently serving his second, two-year term in the House.
Scholten, a 45-year-old former professional baseball player who rose to prominence in 2018 when he nearly unseated then-Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Steve King in western Iowa’s 4th Congressional District, spoke to the Sioux City Journal about his decision.
“It’s one of those things where I kind of blinked and I looked (and) holy cow almost a decade has gone by me being in politics and I’ve never wanted to be a career politician,” Scholten told the Journal. “I put a lot of my personal life on hold to run initially, and I thought I was just going to run for 15 months, 16 months against King and here we are almost a decade later and it’s time to move on.”
With that, Iowa House Democrats now will look to hold their one seat in northwest Iowa this November as Scholten shifts away from politics.
Scholten, who retired from baseball after the 2025 season with the Sioux City Explorers, said one of the triggers for the surprise decision was an injury this past fall.
“When I tore my left bicep in October, I had to pay for an MRI out of pocket. It was at the doctor’s recommendation because I had to get a surgery within two weeks of the injury,” Scholten said. “And then it just opened my eyes to, you know, we have health insurance through this, but the cost of living is going up. Getting paid 25 grand a year (as a state legislator) is not ideal, especially for as much work as we put in. And none of us are there to get rich. We understand that.”
Scholten has spent time as a paralegal, a political director for a U.S. Senate campaign, and an executive director for the super PAC Rural Vote, among other jobs.
From a political standpoint, Scholten said he feels this cycle is a good time to not run again, as he believes Democrats appear poised to do well in Iowa with potentially competitive races for governor, U.S. Senate and U.S. House.
“I’d rather pass the baton when Democrats have a good chance of saving the seat and expanding,” he said.
The only other elected state Democrat from northwest Iowa is Sen. Catelin Drey, who won a special election in August.
GOP legislator endorses Sherman for governor
Iowa Rep. Judd Lawler, R-Oxford, has endorsed Republican Brad Sherman for governor, the Sherman campaign said this week.
Sherman, a former state legislator from Williamsburg, is one of five Republicans seeking the party’s nomination in Iowa’s open-seat gubernatorial election this year.
The other Republicans running are U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra, of Hull; former state agency director Adam Steen, of Runnells; state legislator Eddie Andrews, of Johnston; and business owner Zach Lahn, of Belle Plaine.
“I was glad to campaign for Brad when he ran to represent our family in the state legislature, and I’m proud to support his gubernatorial campaign now,” Lawler said in a Sherman campaign press release. “We need strong, principled leadership. Brad will provide that for Iowa.”
Christian leader Dr. Jim Garlow also this week endorsed Sherman for governor, his campaign said.
“Brad Sherman has a passion for restoring the foundational principles found in the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution,” Garlow said in a press release from the Sherman campaign. “He has labored for decades in the state of Iowa as a pastor and patriot promoting a Christian worldview and conservative values. I have known him to be consistent and steadfast; he has paid his dues.”
Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds last year announced that she will not run for re-election.
More local unions endorse Zach Wahls
Teamsters Local 238, and the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 and Local 234 have endorsed Zach Wahls in the competitive Democratic primary election in Iowa’s open-seat 2026 U.S. Senate election.
Wahls, a state legislator from Coralville, is one of three Democrats seeking the party’s nomination.
The other Democrats running for U.S. Senate are Council Bluffs state legislator Josh Turek and Nathan Sage, a former chamber of commerce leader from Indianola.
“Zach Wahls is the real deal — he’s honest, he listens, and he doesn’t put on an act for election season,” Jesse Case, secretary-treasurer and principal officer of Teamsters Local 238, said in a Wahls campaign press release. “Most politicians talk about fighting corruption, but Zach has a record of actually taking it on and standing up to the special interests that try to rig the system. The Wahls campaign is setting the standard for how campaigns should treat people in Iowa.”
“Operating Engineers are the people who literally build this country — running the heavy equipment, maintaining the machinery, and getting the job done safely and professionally,” James Sweeney, president-business manager of International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150, said in a Wahls campaign press release. “Zach Wahls has consistently shown he understands that strong wages, strong benefits, and strong safety standards are how you build a strong middle class. He’s earned our support because he’ll fight for prevailing wage protections, apprenticeship and training programs that create real career paths, and a federal government that invests in infrastructure the right way: with union labor and local workers first.”
Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst announced last year that she will not seek a third, six-year term this year.
Twedt-Ball announces series of endorsements
Current and former state legislators, and local government and community leaders are among a list of endorsements announced by Democrat Clint Twedt-Ball, who is running for Congress in Eastern Iowa’s 2nd District.
Twedt-Ball, a nonprofit leader from Cedar Rapids, is one of four Democrats seeking their party’s nomination in the open-seat election. The others are state legislator Lindsay James of Dubuque, retired nursing dean Kathy Dolter from Asbury, and Guy Morgan of Boone.
“I enthusiastically support Clint Twedt-Ball for Congress because he’s not a career politician — he’s a proven, problem-solving servant-leader who has spent over two decades rolling up his sleeves to help neighbors in need across northeast Iowa,” Iowa Sen. Art Staed, D-Cedar Rapids, said in a press release from the Twedt-Ball campaign.
Others endorsing Twedt-Ball include former state senator Rob Hogg, former Linn County Supervisor Stacey Walker and Cedar Rapids City Council member Ann Poe.
Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson is running in Iowa’s 2026 U.S. Senate election.
Americans for Prosperity endorses Miller-Meeks
Americans for Prosperity Action has endorsed Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in Eastern Iowa’s 1st Congressional District.
Miller-Meeks likely will face Democrat Christina Bohannan for a third consecutive general election in one of the country’s most competitive U.S. House districts.
“From protecting Iowans from the largest tax hike in American history with the passage of the Working Families Tax Cut to battling inflation and cost-of-living increases ushered in by the disastrous Biden economy, Miller-Meeks continues to be a champion for Iowa values, putting common sense leadership ahead of party politics,” AFP Action senior adviser Tyler Raygor said in a press release from the group. “Influenced by her career as a doctor, Rep. Miller-Meeks has led the Republican plan to lower health care costs and increase access for all Americans.”
Iowa’s primary election is June 2 and the general election is Nov. 3.
Get the latest Iowa politics and government coverage each morning in the On Iowa Politics newsletter.
Daily Newsletters