The nation’s eyes are again on Iowa

The 2024 Congressional election in Iowa’s U.S. House District 1 was one of the closest in the nation. The final count showed the winner, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, defeated Christina Bohannan by only 799 votes out of over 400,000 cast, and the likely rematch in 2026 is projected to be as closely contested.

Other races in 2026 are also expected to be close. The Cook Political Report rates the congressional elections in both District 1 and District 3 as toss-ups and, with no incumbents, the U.S. Senate and District 2 races, will likely be close as well.

With so much at stake, the Republican and Democratic national parties have identified these Iowa races as critical for majority control of the U.S. House of Representatives and possibly the Senate. Our 2026 Congressional and Senate elections could not be more important.

It is with rising alarm, therefore, that we have listened to President Donald Trump threaten our right to vote in free and fair elections. In fifteen “places,” he recently declared, elections should be “nationalized” and control of the election process given to the Republican Party.

Trump continues to proclaim, despite over 60 court rulings against him, that in 2020 he won in states where he was legally declared the loser. Unphased by the facts, in January Trump sent FBI agents and the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, to seize the ballots cast in 2020 in Fulton County, Georgia. Last spring, Gabbard undertook a similar mission in Puerto Rico.

Taking threats to the next level, former Trump adviser and podcaster Steve Bannon recently proclaimed that ICE agents should surround polling places in the 2026 election, an action that would undermine voter turnout, as people, especially people of color, would fear going to the polls. Trump clearly seeks to deny Democrats control of either the House or the Senate by any means necessary.

Steps must be taken immediately to protect our democracy.

In Iowa we need to make certain that all parties at the state and county level are alert to and prepared for any federal effort to usurp their power. We must be vigilant about any county or state acquiescence to Trump’s demands for control of the voting process and counting the ballots. The Constitution guarantees that Iowa elections belong to the people of Iowa, not the federal government.

Every candidate for office in Iowa must commit to guarding and protecting our democracy. Some political observers say that building a congressional campaign around democracy relies on an appeal that most people view as too abstract compared to “meat and potato” issues. But protecting our right to vote and having one’s vote counted as it was cast is not an abstract concept.

Candidates must clearly and forcefully commit to these rights as they campaign. Our right to vote is the foundation of our democracy and our votes must be fairly counted as we cast them.

The writers, retired UI faculty, started a research and writing group focused on learning about the diverse residents and issues facing communities in Iowa’s 1st District. They are Charles Connerly, Frytown; Maryann Rasmussen, Iowa City; Shelton Stromquist, Iowa City and James Throgmorton, Iowa City.