‘We need a new path forward,’ Iowa congressional candidate Taylor Wettach says of Democrats

KNOXVILLE — Like other Iowa Democrats, Taylor Wettach is calling for a change in how his party talks to voters during the 2026 midterm elections as he runs for Iowa’s 1st Congressional District, one of the most competitive races in the country.

During a campaign swing through Knoxville and Oskaloosa on Saturday, Wettach, an international trade and national security lawyer from Muscatine, said his party needs “new, bold, energetic leadership” if it wants to unseat three-term Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in a race national forecasters rate as a toss-up.

“There are some folks out there that believe that Iowans should have the decision made for them by folks in D.C. But my view is that Iowans can vote for themselves and make their own decisions on who can represent them,” Wettach said. “At this moment, the stakes are too high to keep trying to do the same thing over and over again and hoping for a different result.”

He is gearing up to face two other Democratic candidates in the spring primaries — Christina Bohannan, a University of Iowa law professor and former state lawmaker, and health care worker Travis Terrell of Tiffin.

Wettach, 35, is framing himself as a grassroots candidate, highlighting the importance of talking to voters in all areas of the district beyond the “blue dots.” He advocates for raising the minimum wage, establishing universal health care, banning congressional stock trading and standing up to the “establishment” of both political parties.

He decided to jump into the race last year to run against Bohannan, who is running for the third time after losing to Miller-Meeks by fewer than 800 votes in 2024.

Bohannan currently leads the other Democratic candidates in campaign funds, raising $1.06 million in the third quarter of 2025. Wettach raised $429,099 in his first quarter as a candidate.

Republican David Pautsch, of Davenport, founder of the annual Quad Cities Prayer Breakfast, is challenging Miller-Meeks in the primary for the second time.

Health care and the economy: Giving Iowans a ‘fair shot’

During his campaign stops Saturday, Wettach said if elected, he would prioritize reinstating funding for programs cut in a GOP-backed reconciliation package dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” signed by President Donald Trump in July.

At the same time, he said Democrats need to focus on regaining the trust of voters and running on giving Iowans a “fair shot” rather than putting Band-Aids over the current system.

“We need an Iowa where folks aren't just getting by, but they can thrive. An Iowa where hard work leads small businesses to thrive and succeed and support our small towns,” Wettach said. “We need an Iowa where people don't feel like the system is rigged by those at the very top against the rest of us.”

Last year, Wettach said, he left the law firm he had been working for when it joined a settlement with Trump.

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP was among five law firms that agreed to provide $125 million in free legal work to the administration for causes including veterans affairs and combating antisemitism in order to avoid the prospect of punishing executive orders, the Associated Press reported.

Wettach also criticized Miller-Meeks for voting against extending enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies earlier this month, which he said will negatively affect Iowans and rural hospitals.

In December, Miller-Meeks introduced a bill designed to lower premiums by an estimated $750 to $900 per year by expanding insurance options for small businesses and the self-employed, clarifying the use of stop-loss insurance and increasing transparency around prescription drug pricing. The bill passed the House but did not make it to the floor of the U.S. Senate.

Considering the candidates

Longtime Oskaloosa resident Cheryl Benson said she braved the below-freezing cold and snow Saturday to talk to Wettach at a local coffee shop because she wants to see Democratic candidates other than Bohannan running for the congressional seat.

“I think Bohannan had two goes at it. And, you know, she kind of tends to stick to the bigger cities,” Benson told the Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau. “I voted (for) Bohannan the last couple times, but I'm kind of looking for somebody different now. “

Pat Finan, who lives west of Knoxville and attended Wettach’s event at a Mexican restaurant in town, said he’s not sure who he is backing in the race yet. He volunteers at a local food pantry and said Wettach’s ideas on supporting low-income Iowans, including increasing the minimum wage, resonated with him.

“I think he's the type of guy who's going to go up to Washington and say ‘enough.’ You know, I'm not saying that right now, he's my guy, and I really haven't looked into it,” Finan said. “But I was really impressed by what I saw today.”

Iowa’s 2026 primary election is June 2 and the general election is Nov. 3.

Gazette Deputy Des Moines Bureau Chief Tom Barton contributed to this report.