Tom Barton

Dave Bushaw, a West Union farmer, musician and former Bernie Sanders organizer, announced an independent campaign for Iowa’s open 2nd Congressional District seat, pledging to champion working-class Iowans through grassroots organizing.

Iowa U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks faced a combative crowd Monday during her first in-person town hall of the year, as frustrated constituents booed, heckled and shouted over the congresswoman throughout an hourlong event in Keosauqua that laid bare southeast Iowa voters’ anxieties about the economy, health care and immigration enforcement.

Republican Iowa U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks will hold an in-person town hall Monday in Keosauqua after facing mounting criticism and pressure to hold an in-person forum after she pledged to do so earlier this year.

With the federal government shutdown stretching on, HACAP’s Chris Ackman says the LIHEAP program that helps thousands of Iowans pay winter heating bills could soon face funding delays if Washington gridlock continues.

At a Cedar Rapids church, three Democratic U.S. Senate candidates — Josh Turek, Zach Wahls, and Nathan Sage — reflected on the Black national anthem’s lessons of unity, hope and perservearance, sharing personal stories that shape their priorities on healthcare, equity, and economic justice.

Iowa U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson met with veterans in Cedar Rapids about efforts to end the record-long government shutdown, ensure SNAP and military pay, reform ACA subsidies, and preserve the Senate filibuster as a bipartisan “guardrail.”

Wearing red “Iowa First LFG” hats, supporters cheered as Lahn vowed to protect farmland, oppose corporate consolidation and champion socially conservative policies in a bid to reshape Iowa’s future.

At his 98th county stop, Democratic U.S. Senate hopeful Nathan Sage told supporters Iowa needs fighters from the working class, not the wealthy. Supporters said his life story and plainspoken style make him “real and relatable” in a red state.

Gov. Kim Reynolds’ “Healthy Hometowns” plan aims to modernize rural hospitals with federal aid from a new $50 billion fund — but health leaders warn it won’t fully offset sweeping Medicaid reductions.

Under new federal guidance, only households receiving the maximum SNAP benefit will get half their usual amount. Most Iowa families will see far less, and some may receive nothing at all.

Get to know The Gazette’s Deputy Des Moines Bureau Chief Tom Barton

Iowa GOP Congerssman Randy Feenstra, newly in the 2026 Iowa governor’s race, toured a Cedar Rapids food pantry Tuesday as the federal shutdown halts food aid for thousands of Iowans. Feenstra praised local “neighbors helping neighbors,” defended his campaign rollout, and said he’ll debate his Republican rivals while urging Congress to reopen the government.

Republican Attorney General Brenna Bird touts her support for law enforcement and former President Trump, while Democrat Nate Willems says the office should focus less on political lawsuits and more on wage theft, consumer protection and ordinary Iowans.

Former teachers, education agency staff and a parent told Rob Sand that Iowa’s new AEA structure has reduced support for classrooms and families, while one district leader said it’s given schools more flexibility.

As the shutdown disrupts food aid and open enrollment begins, Iowa Democrats Zach Wahls and Josh Turek urged Republicans to act on health care and hunger. Hinson’s campaign countered that Democrats are “using vulnerable Iowans as leverage” in the standoff.