Democrat Josh Turek wins Iowa Senate seat, defeating Ashley Hinson

Democrat Josh Turek won Iowa’s open U.S. Senate seat, defeating Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson in a race shaped by rising costs, trade pressures and the war in Iran. His victory ends more than a decade of Republican control of both of Iowa’s Senate seats and brings Democrats one step closer to control of the chamber.

The Associated Press called the race for Turek, while CBS News and NBC News also projected his victory. He will succeed Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, who chose not to seek a third term. Iowa had not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2008, and President Donald Trump carried the state by 13 points in 2024.

Turek, 47, is a state representative from Council Bluffs and a two-time Paralympic gold medalist in wheelchair basketball. Born with spina bifida, he has said he believes the condition resulted from his father’s exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. He won election to the Iowa House in 2022, becoming the state Legislature’s first permanently disabled member, according to NBC News.

Calling himself a “prairie populist,” Turek campaigned on health care reform and his record of working across party lines. He criticized Hinson’s support for Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which reduces Medicaid spending nationwide by nearly $1 trillion, NPR reported. He also attacked her votes backing Trump’s trade policies and her stance on the Iran war. NBC News reported that the war contributed to higher gas and diesel prices; NPR reported that Trump’s tariffs hit Iowa’s agricultural industry hard.

Hinson, 43, a former local news anchor who has served in the House since 2021, initially promised to be Trump’s “top ally” in the Senate, CBS News reported. As the race tightened, she sought to show she could disagree with him. During an October debate, she said she would be his ally when it was “important for Iowa” but would also “push back on him,” according to CBS News. She called for a “successful and immediate end” to the Iran war after opposing congressional efforts to limit the president’s war powers.

“I work alongside the president. When he’s right for Iowa, I’m going to tell him. When he’s wrong for Iowa, I’m going to tell him,” Hinson told NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Llamas on Oct. 21. Separately, NBC News reported that Hinson cited two of her bills signed by former President Joe Biden in debates and on the campaign trail: one aimed at preventing stillbirths and another calling for a federal study of rural veterans’ mental health.

Turek defeated former state Senate minority leader Zach Wahls in a contested June Democratic primary. Hinson entered the general election as an early favorite, with Trump’s endorsement in a state that had voted for him three times. Polls later showed a close contest, and both sides spent heavily.

The candidates raised more than $30 million combined, while outside groups contributed more than $100 million, NPR reported, citing federal spending data and OpenSecrets. NBC News put total spending by the candidates’ committees and outside groups at about $200 million.

Democrats needed a net gain of at least four seats to take control of the Senate, according to NBC News. CBS News also reported that Democrat Rob Sand won Iowa’s governor’s race.