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United States Senate election in Iowa, 2026

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2022
U.S. Senate, Iowa
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 13, 2026
Primary: June 2, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Iowa

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Likely Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Likely Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Likely Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
U.S. Senate, Iowa
U.S. Senate1st2nd3rd4th
Iowa elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

Voters in Iowa will elect one member to the U.S. Senate in the general election on November 3, 2026. The primary is June 2, 2026. The filing deadline is March 13, 2026. The election will fill the Class II Senate seat held by Joni Ernst (R), who first took office in 2015. For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for U.S. Senate Iowa

The following candidates are running in the general election for U.S. Senate Iowa on November 3, 2026.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here. You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:

Voting information

See also: Voting in Iowa

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:


Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Chris Henry Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Nathan Sage Democratic Party $1,119,898 $851,129 $268,769 As of September 30, 2025
Josh Turek Democratic Party $1,008,592 $356,611 $651,981 As of September 30, 2025
Zach Wahls Democratic Party $1,303,295 $718,251 $585,045 As of September 30, 2025
John Berman Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Jim Carlin Republican Party $170,893 $169,165 $1,728 As of September 30, 2025
Ashley Hinson Republican Party $3,212,895 $1,087,489 $4,053,481 As of September 30, 2025
Joshua Smith Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Thomas Laehn Libertarian Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]

Race ratings: U.S. Senate election in Iowa, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
12/23/202512/16/202512/9/202512/2/2025
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely Republican
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely Republican
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Iowa in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Iowa, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Iowa U.S. Senate Ballot-qualified party 3,500, including at least 100 signatures from at least 19 counties. N/A 3/13/2026 Source
Iowa U.S. Senate Unaffiliated 3,500, including at least 100 signatures from at least 19 counties. N/A 8/22/2026 Source


Election history

The section below details election results for this state's U.S. Senate elections dating back to 2016.

2022

See also: United States Senate election in Iowa, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Iowa

Incumbent Chuck Grassley defeated Michael Franken in the general election for U.S. Senate Iowa on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Chuck Grassley
Chuck Grassley (R)
 
56.0
 
681,501
Image of Michael Franken
Michael Franken (D)
 
43.8
 
533,330
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
1,815

Total votes: 1,216,646
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Iowa

Michael Franken defeated Abby Finkenauer and Glenn Hurst in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Iowa on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Michael Franken
Michael Franken
 
55.2
 
86,527
Image of Abby Finkenauer
Abby Finkenauer
 
39.9
 
62,581
Image of Glenn Hurst
Glenn Hurst Candidate Connection
 
4.8
 
7,571
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
158

Total votes: 156,837
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Iowa

Incumbent Chuck Grassley defeated Jim Carlin in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Iowa on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Chuck Grassley
Chuck Grassley
 
73.3
 
143,634
Image of Jim Carlin
Jim Carlin
 
26.5
 
51,891
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
312

Total votes: 195,837
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2020

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Iowa

Incumbent Joni Ernst defeated Theresa Greenfield, Rick Stewart, and Suzanne Herzog in the general election for U.S. Senate Iowa on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Joni Ernst
Joni Ernst (R)
 
51.7
 
864,997
Image of Theresa Greenfield
Theresa Greenfield (D)
 
45.2
 
754,859
Image of Rick Stewart
Rick Stewart (L) Candidate Connection
 
2.2
 
36,961
Image of Suzanne Herzog
Suzanne Herzog (Independent) Candidate Connection
 
0.8
 
13,800
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
1,211

Total votes: 1,671,828
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Iowa

Theresa Greenfield defeated Michael Franken, Kimberly Graham, Eddie Mauro, and Cal Woods (Unofficially withdrew) in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Iowa on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Theresa Greenfield
Theresa Greenfield
 
47.7
 
132,001
Image of Michael Franken
Michael Franken Candidate Connection
 
24.9
 
68,851
Image of Kimberly Graham
Kimberly Graham Candidate Connection
 
15.0
 
41,554
Image of Eddie Mauro
Eddie Mauro
 
11.0
 
30,400
Image of Cal Woods
Cal Woods (Unofficially withdrew) Candidate Connection
 
1.2
 
3,372
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
514

Total votes: 276,692
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Iowa

Incumbent Joni Ernst advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Iowa on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Joni Ernst
Joni Ernst
 
98.6
 
226,589
 Other/Write-in votes
 
1.4
 
3,132

Total votes: 229,721
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2016

U.S. Senate, Iowa General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngChuck Grassley Incumbent 60.1% 926,007
     Democratic Patty Judge 35.7% 549,460
     Libertarian Charles Aldrich 2.7% 41,794
     New Independent Party Iowa Jim Hennager 1.1% 17,649
     Independent Michael Luick-Thrams 0.3% 4,441
     N/A Write-in 0.1% 1,685
Total Votes 1,541,036
Source: Iowa Secretary of State




Election analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.

  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
  • Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
  • State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
  • Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.


See also: Presidential voting trends in Iowa and The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Cook PVI by congressional district

Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index for Iowa, 2026
District Incumbent PVI
Iowa's 1st Mariannette Miller-Meeks R+4
Iowa's 2nd Ashley Hinson R+4
Iowa's 3rd Zach Nunn R+2
Iowa's 4th Randy Feenstra R+15

2024 presidential results by 2026 congressional district lines

2024 presidential results in congressional districts, Iowa
District Kamala Harris Democratic Party Donald Trump Republican Party
Iowa's 1st 45.0% 54.0%
Iowa's 2nd 44.0% 54.0%
Iowa's 3rd 47.0% 52.0%
Iowa's 4th 34.0% 65.0%
Source: The Downballot

2016-2024

How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:


Following the 2024 presidential election, 59.6% of Iowans lived in one of the state's 93 Solid Republican counties, which voted for the Republican presidential candidate in every election from 2016 to 2024, and 34.9% lived in one of 5 Solid Democratic counties. Overall, Iowa was Solid Republican, having voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016, Donald Trump (R) in 2020, and Donald Trump (R) in 2024. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Iowa following the 2024 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.

Historical voting trends

Iowa presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 11 Democratic wins
  • 21 Republican wins
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R D R R R R D D R R D R R R D R R R R R D D D D R D D R R R

This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.

U.S. Senate elections

See also: List of United States Senators from Iowa

The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Iowa.

U.S. Senate election results in Iowa
Race Winner Runner up
2022 56.0%Republican Party 43.8%Democratic Party
2020 51.8%Republican Party 45.2%Democratic Party
2016 60.1%Republican Party 35.7%Democratic Party
2014 52.1%Republican Party 43.8%Republican Party
2010 64.5%Republican Party 33.2%Democratic Party
Average 56.9 40.3

Gubernatorial elections

See also: Governor of Iowa

The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Iowa.

Gubernatorial election results in Iowa
Race Winner Runner up
2022 58.0%Republican Party 39.5%Democratic Party
2018 50.3%Republican Party 47.5%Democratic Party
2014 59.0%Republican Party 37.3%Democratic Party
2010 52.8%Republican Party 43.2%Republican Party
2006 54.0%Democratic Party 44.4%Republican Party
Average 54.8 42.4
See also: Party control of Iowa state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Iowa's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Iowa
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 0 0 0
Republican 2 4 6
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 4 6

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Iowa's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Iowa, October 2025
Office Officeholder
Governor Republican Party Kim Reynolds
Lieutenant Governor Republican Party Chris Cournoyer
Secretary of State Republican Party Paul Pate
Attorney General Republican Party Brenna Bird

State legislature

Iowa State Senate

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 16
     Republican Party 33
     Other 0
     Vacancies 1
Total 50

Iowa House of Representatives

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 33
     Republican Party 66
     Other 0
     Vacancies 1
Total 100

Trifecta control

Iowa Party Control: 1992-2025
Four years of Democratic trifectas  •  Eleven years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
Senate D D D D D R R R R R R R R S S D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R
House D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

The table below details demographic data in Iowa and compares it to the broader United States as of 2023.

Demographic Data for Iowa
Iowa United States
Population 3,190,369 331,449,281
Land area (sq mi) 55,853 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White 85.6% 63.4%
Black/African American 3.9% 12.4%
Asian 2.4% 5.8%
Native American 0.3% 0.9%
Pacific Islander 0.2% 0.4%
Other (single race) 2% 6.6%
Multiple 5.6% 10.7%
Hispanic/Latino 7% 19%
Education
High school graduation rate 93.2% 89.4%
College graduation rate 30.9% 35%
Income
Median household income $73,147 $78,538
Persons below poverty level 11% 12.4%
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023).
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

See also

Iowa 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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External links

Footnotes

  1. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  2. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
Zach Nunn (R)
District 4
Republican Party (6)