
Rob Sand (D), Zach Lahn (R), and Nicholas Gluba (L) are running in the general election for governor of Iowa on November 3, 2026. The Hill's Caroline Vakil said, "While Iowa hasn’t elected a Democrat for governor in two decades, Democrats see an unusually strong candidate in Sand. He is currently the only member of…

The Iowa General Assembly adjourned its 2026 regular session on May 3 after passing five election-related bills. Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed each of the bills by June 2. Among the enacted bills was HF 2601, which prohibits foreign contributions in ballot measure elections. Iowa previously had a ban on foreign funding for candidate elections,…

On June 2, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed legislation, HF 2601, which prohibits foreign contributions in ballot measure elections. Iowa previously had a ban on foreign funding for candidate elections, but no such prohibition on foreign contributions to ballot measure committees. Iowa is now the 25th state to ban foreign nationals or governments from…

Josh Turek (D) defeated Zach Wahls (D) in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate in Iowa on June 2, 2026. Incumbent Sen. Joni Ernst (R) did not run for re-election. The Cook Political Report's Jessica Taylor described this race as one of the 2026 primaries in which Democrats debated about what type of candidate…

There are 100 incumbents running for re-election in the primaries for Iowa's state Legislature on June 2. Fifteen of those incumbents (15%) are contested, the most since 2012, when there were 16. There are a total of 125 seats up for election this year, including all 100 seats in the state House and 25 seats…

As of May 12, 105 statewide measures have been certified for the ballot in 37 states, 10 more measures than the average number certified at this point in other even-numbered years over the past decade (2014 to 2024). Here’s an update on the latest ballot measure activity during the past two weeks: The most recent…

Iowa voters will decide on a constitutional amendment at the November 3, 2026, election that would require a two-thirds (about 66.67%) vote from both chambers of the general assembly to approve a bill that would increase the individual or corporate income tax rate. The amendment would also require a two-thirds vote in both chambers of…

Two candidates are running in the Democratic primary to represent Iowa in the U.S. Senate on June 2, 2026: Josh Turek (D) and Zach Wahls (D). Incumbent Sen. Joni Ernst (R) is not running for re-election. The Cook Political Report's Jessica Taylor describes this race as one of the 2026 primaries in which Democrats are…

This year’s filing deadline for candidates running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Iowa was March 13, 2026. Five primaries — three Democratic and two Republican — are contested this year. That’s the highest total number of contested primaries since 2014. There were three contested primaries in 2024, one in 2022, four in 2020,…

Thirty-six states are holding elections for governor in 2026. Of those, Ballotpedia has identified seven as general election battlegrounds: These battleground races were selected using the following criteria. For more information on our methodology, click here: In addition to the competitiveness data above, races were included if they were particularly compelling or meaningful to the…