Federal race · November 3, 2026
U.S. Senate
One of Iowa's two U.S. senators, who vote on federal legislation, confirm presidential nominees and ratify treaties.
6-year term. Open seat: no incumbent is running. Regular election for the seat held by Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, who is not seeking reelection. Ashley Hinson (Republican) and Josh Turek (Democratic) won their party primaries on June 2, 2026; Thomas Laehn qualified for the ballot by nomination petition as the Libertarian candidate.
The candidates
Listed alphabetically by last name.
Ashley Hinson
U.S. Representative, Iowa's 2nd Congressional DistrictAshley Hinson is a Republican member of the U.S. House from northeast Iowa and a former Iowa state representative and television news anchor. Her Senate campaign centers on border security, lowering costs for families, agriculture and working alongside President Trump.
Thomas Laehn
Greene County AttorneyThomas Laehn is the Greene County Attorney and the first Libertarian elected to a partisan office in Iowa. He says he is running against the two-party system, with a focus on limiting executive power, ending eminent domain for private gain and decriminalizing marijuana.
Josh Turek
State Representative, Iowa House District 20Josh Turek is a Democratic state representative from Council Bluffs and a two-time Paralympic gold medalist in wheelchair basketball. He describes himself as a prairie populist, and his campaign centers on living costs, health care, farm policy and congressional ethics.
Compare on the issues
Summaries of each candidate's stated positions. See each profile for sources and details.
| Issue | Ashley Hinson Republican | Thomas Laehn Libertarian | Josh Turek Democratic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abortion | Says she opposes abortion with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother; cosponsored the Life at Conception Act in the 2021–2022 Congress. | Says abortion policy should be left to the states, with no role for Congress. | Supports restoring the protections of Roe v. Wade in federal law and protecting access to contraception and IVF. |
| Elections & Democracy | Supports banning members of Congress from trading individual stocks or betting on prediction markets, and stronger lobbying bans. | Says he would sponsor legislation removing PACs and super PACs from elections. | Supports banning corporate PAC money, a constitutional amendment to reverse Citizens United, and term limits for Congress and Supreme Court justices. |
| Immigration | Says she would enforce immigration laws and deport people in the country illegally who have committed crimes. | Supports a secure border and raising or removing caps on legal immigration. | Supports bipartisan legislation pairing border security with an earned path to citizenship, and deporting people here illegally who commit crimes. |
| Taxes | Supports cutting taxes for working families and letting first-time homebuyers save tax-free for a down payment. | Says he would oppose spending bills that add to the national debt, except in emergencies, and supports a balanced budget amendment. | Supports tax cuts for the middle class and working families and closing tax loopholes used by billionaires and large corporations. |
| Agriculture | Supports year-round E15 sales and a new Farm Bill, and opposes California's Proposition 12 animal-housing rules. | No public position found yet | Supports a Farm Bill, a federal right-to-repair law for farm equipment, mandatory country-of-origin labeling, and ending tariffs he says threaten farmers. |
| Health Care | Supports requiring drug-price transparency, holding pharmacy benefit managers accountable and expanding over-the-counter birth control access. | No public position found yet | Supports restoring Medicaid funding reduced by recent federal cuts, protecting and expanding the Affordable Care Act and creating a public option. |
| Housing | Supports barring large institutional investors from buying single-family homes in Iowa neighborhoods. | No public position found yet | Supports barring private equity firms from buying single-family homes and farmland, and simpler permitting for affordable housing. |
| Education | No public position found yet | No public position found yet | Opposes school vouchers and supports more funding for public schools, restoring U.S. Department of Education funding and protecting Area Education Agency funding. |
| Foreign Policy | No public position found yet | Says he would oppose wars that lack congressional approval and bring U.S. troops home. | No public position found yet |
| Property Rights | No public position found yet | Supports barring private companies from using eminent domain to take property for commercial gain. | No public position found yet |
| Public Safety | No public position found yet | Says the first bill he would introduce would decriminalize marijuana possession and use. | No public position found yet |
| Social Security & Medicare | Says she would protect Social Security and Medicare while cutting waste, fraud and abuse in the programs. | No public position found yet | No public position found yet |

