Two Republicans and two Democrats are running to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst as Iowa’s junior senator.
Ernst’s retirement after two terms leaves a Senate seat open for the first time since 2014.
The two Republicans running for their party’s nomination are former state Sen. Jim Carlin of Sergeant Bluff and U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson of Marion.
The two Democrats running are state Rep. Josh Turek of Council Bluffs and state Sen. Zach Wahls of Coralville.
Libertarian Thomas Laehn also is running, although he will not appear on the June 2 primary ballot.
To help voters, the Des Moines Register sent questions to all federal and Des Moines area legislative candidates running for political office this year. Their answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Click below to learn more about the candidates and where they stand on key issues:
| Bios | Top issue | Immigration | Cost of living | Health care access | Tariffs |
Who is Jim Carlin?
Who is Ashley Hinson?
Who is Josh Turek?
Who is Zach Wahls?
What would be your top issue if elected?
Carlin (R): The top issue is getting Washington under control, because it’s driving much of the economic hardship people are facing. Reckless spending fuels inflation — that’s a tax on everything — and it’s hitting seniors on fixed incomes the hardest. It’s raised housing costs, groceries, student loan debt and interest and health care costs through the Affordable Care Act. As Ronald Reagan said, government isn’t the solution, it’s the problem. My focus is on restoring fiscal discipline and lowering costs.
Hinson (R): I’m a working mom — whether it’s filling the minivan or feeding two teenage boys, high prices hit our family just like families across Iowa. That’s why lowering costs will be my top priority in the U.S. Senate. We’ve delivered tax relief for working families, but there’s more to do. I’ll keep fighting to lower health care, prescription drug, grocery, energy and child care costs — while taking on Big Pharma and Big Insurance companies, expanding access to maternal care and helping families afford homes and plan for their future.
Turek (D): As a common-sense prairie populist, I am laser-focused on lowering costs and addressing the corruption that’s hurting working families in the rigged economy that we currently have. Washington is riddled with corrupt, out of touch politicians who would rather enrich themselves and their big-dollar donors than deliver for everyday families. In the U.S. Senate, I will address corruption head-on by getting dark money out of politics, holding our elected officials accountable and lowering costs to put working families first, not billionaires and massive corporations.
Wahls (D): My top issue is fighting corruption and fixing an economy that is rigged against Iowans. I’m sick of Democrats folding. Sick of Chuck Schumer writing off rural and blue-collar voters. Sick of politicians getting rich trading stocks while Donald Trump dismantles our democracy in plain sight. Sick of rubber stamps like Ashley Hinson. It doesn’t have to be this way. I won’t answer to Schumer, Trump, Elon Musk or big corporations — they don’t own me. I’ll restore Medicaid and ACA cuts, and repeal the reckless tariffs devastating Iowa’s ag economy and raising prices for Iowans.
How do you rate President Trump’s handling of immigration, and what should the Senate’s role be in setting immigration policy?
Hinson (R): President Trump secured the border after four years of President Biden’s failed open-border policies, with 11 straight months of zero releases of apprehended illegal immigrants by enforcing our laws and prioritizing Americans. I support a strong, law-and-order approach: secure the border, enforce immigration laws and deport criminal illegal aliens. Allowing illegal immigration undermines the rule of law and is unfair to those who respect our laws and come here the right way. We must strengthen border security, continue enforcement and modernize our legal immigration system.
Turek (D): Immigration is an issue that’s personal to me: my wife is an Afro-Latina immigrant. I saw how broken our immigration system is when she was initially denied citizenship and threatened with deportation without getting an interview during the first Trump administration. Immigrants are essential to our economy — we need immigrant workers in industries like meatpacking and health care to keep our communities running. Iowans deserve an immigration system that keeps our borders secure and enforces our laws while simplifying the path to earned citizenship. Those two goals are not mutually exclusive.
Wahls (D): Trump’s immigration approach has been chaos and cruelty — terrorizing families and communities and violating our most basic freedoms. My Democratic primary opponent voted with Republicans on a bill requiring Iowa law enforcement to work with ICE. The ACLU called it the “most anti-immigrant bill in Iowa’s history.” I voted against it — bills like that make Iowa less safe, not more safe. Our system is broken and needs comprehensive reform: secure borders, keep criminals and drugs out of our country, and create a pathway to citizenship with back taxes and functional immigration courts.
Carlin (R): President Trump understood something Washington had ignored for decades: A nation that does not control its borders is not truly sovereign. Under his administration, we saw real enforcement, the construction of physical barriers and policies like Remain in Mexico that actually reduced illegal crossings. I would rate his approach as very effective because it prioritized the safety, security and economic well-being of American citizens. I’d focus on a few basics: finish the border wall, require E-Verify so jobs go to legal workers and end policies that encourage people to come here illegally.
How can you as a U.S. senator help Iowans struggling with high costs?
Turek (D): I grew up with Goodwill clothes and the wrong color lunch tickets. I am the only candidate in this race — Democrat or Republican — who is not a millionaire. Working class Iowans can trust me to fight for them because I know what it’s like to struggle. In the Iowa House, I’ve worked to drive private equity out of the housing market so Iowans can afford homeownership, taken on Big Pharma to lower the cost of prescriptions, fought to raise the minimum wage and protected workers’ rights. I’ll do the same thing in the U.S. Senate.
Wahls (D): Iowans are getting squeezed at the grocery store, the doctor’s office and the pharmacy. Corporations that buy politicians are rigging the rules. As senator, I’ll take on corporate price gouging, cap insulin at $35, fight for a public health insurance option, restore the Medicaid cuts Ashley Hinson voted for and the chaotic Trump tariffs she approved — and break up the monopolies driving up costs. I refuse corporate PAC money because you cannot fight the rigged system if you’re funded by the people running it.
Carlin (R): These high costs didn’t just happen. During COVID, cheap money flooded the housing market, driving prices up. Then Washington piled on with massive deficit spending, which is inflation, and it’s a tax on everything. The Affordable Care Act, upheld as a tax in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, meant higher costs and fewer choices. Student loans trap young people in compounding debt. I’ll fight to cut spending, restore competition and bring costs down.
Hinson (R): As a mom of two boys, I know how quickly grocery bills, child care, health care and other everyday expenses add up. Iowa families are working hard, doing everything right, and they deserve a senator who is focused on making their paychecks go further. In the Senate, I will fight to lower costs where families feel it most. That means taking on big insurance to reduce health care premiums, holding big pharma accountable to bring down the cost of lifesaving medications and advancing policies that make child care, groceries and basic household expenses more affordable for hardworking Iowans.
What steps should the Senate take to make health care more affordable and accessible?
Wahls (D): My mom Terry has MS, and my mom Jackie is a union nurse at the VA. No Iowan should go bankrupt getting sick or drive hours because their rural hospital closed or local pharmacy shut down. I’ll restore Medicaid cuts forcing those closures, fight to allow Iowans to buy into Medicare at any age, lower eligibility to 55, expand Medicare to cover dental and vision, cap insulin at $35 and crack down on PBMs screwing small-town pharmacies. Ashley Hinson voted for the biggest Medicaid cuts in history and to eliminate Affordable Care Act subsidies Iowans rely on. I’ll be the vote to undo that damage.
Carlin (R): Health care isn’t working for families. Insurance companies deny care through pre-authorizations, which is practicing medicine without a license. The Affordable Care Act added mandates, reduced choices and drove up premiums. It took competition, affordability and quality out of health care by concentrating control in a handful of large providers. We should judge this by results, not intentions. Open the market, support alternatives and bring real competition back to lower costs and quality.
Hinson (R): Health care is too expensive, and we need to work together to fix it. We need to take on Big Pharma and Big Insurance companies that are driving up costs and ensure families can actually afford the care they need. I’m pushing for transparency so insurers disclose spending, denials and wait times, and for reforms so doctors — not insurance companies — make decisions so patients get timely care. I’ve worked to expand maternal care, telehealth and OTC birth control, and secured funding for Iowa’s rural hospitals and will continue working to improve health care access and affordability.
Turek (D): As someone who underwent 21 surgeries by the age of 12, affordable and accessible health care is deeply personal to me. Iowa is in a health care crisis, and it’s working class families like mine that are paying the price. Our broken health care system is the reason I ran for office in the first place. I believe that health care is a human right, and in the Senate, I will fight for a public option, so every single Iowan has access to basic care. I’ll also take on Big Pharma and insurance companies that are jacking up prices and maximizing profits off the most vulnerable.
Have President Trump’s tariffs helped or hurt Iowans? What changes would you push for in the Senate to shape the White House tariff and agriculture policy?
Carlin (R): Tariffs bring short-term pain, but they’re a tool to push back when other countries block our grain and meat while protecting their own. In the long term, we need fair trade, not one-sided deals. The bigger issue is farmers being squeezed by monopolized input markets, grain traders and meatpackers, turning them into contract laborers. We also need to stop foreign money from driving up land prices. Relying on China was a mistake. Open new markets, enforce antitrust laws and restore real competition for American agriculture.
Hinson (R): President Trump is leveling the playing field and opening markets for our farmers. With tight margins and rising input costs, waiting isn’t an option. While we can’t reverse America Last policies overnight, we need strong, enforceable trade deals now so Iowa producers can compete and win. In the Senate, I’ll push to pass the Farm Bill to deliver stability and lower input costs. My priorities — like the Save Our Bacon, PRECISE, Flood Resiliency, and Securing American Agriculture Acts—cut red tape, reduce costs, strengthen supply chains, and expand market access so farmers can succeed.
Turek (D): The Trump tariffs have undoubtedly hurt Iowa farmers. When I am in rural communities, the number one word I hear is “betrayal.” Between Trump’s chaotic tariffs that crushed the soybean market, a $20B bailout to Argentina, and skyrocketing input prices due to both tariffs and a reckless war in the Middle East, Iowa’s farmers are struggling. In the Senate, I’ll champion common sense reforms like Right to Repair, Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling and cracking down on monopolies. I’ll also fight to pass both the Farm Bill and a provision making clear that Congress can’t recess without one.
Wahls (D): Trump’s tariffs have hurt Iowans, especially Iowa farmers. Farmers are paying the price for a trade war they didn’t start and higher input prices that are breaking the bank. As senator, I’ll push to end the tariff chaos, negotiate fair trade deals that open global markets and protect workers, and break up the agribusiness monopolies squeezing family farmers on both ends. We need a new Farm Bill that works for small and mid-size operations — not just Big Ag. Iowa farmers deserve a senator who puts them first.
Learn more about all the 2026 primary races at https://www.desmoinesregister.com/.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Hear from the candidates running for Iowa’s open US Senate seat
Reporting by Stephen Gruber-Miller, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
