Josh Turek Defeats Ashley Hinson in Iowa Senate Race - Newsweek
Democrat Josh Turek has won Iowa's U.S. Senate race, defeating Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson in a contest closely watched as a measure of political sentiment in the rural Midwest.
Turek, an Iowa state representative and two-time Paralymic gold medalist, received 50.5 percent of the vote to Hinson's 46.4 percent.
Turek said in his victory speech that the system has been broken for too long.
"I believe to my core that the single greatest vehicle to make societal change is the United States Senate," he said.
Hinson told her supporters that she is proud of their campaign's old-fashioned grit. She said the fight for common sense is far from over.
"The campaign is behind us, and the work of serving the people of Iowa remains ahead," she said. "It's time to put politics aside, dial down the rhetoric and start solving problems for Iowa's families and Iowa's farmers."
Senate Majority PAC spokesperson Lauren French said Turek will put working families first.
”Turek has spent his career fighting for Iowans, from lowering health care costs and confronting Iowa’s cancer crisis to standing up for the farmers and small businesses that keep the state’s economy running," she said.
Democrats are hoping to flip control of both the House and the Senate in this year's midterm elections. Republicans are trying to fight off a blue wave as Trump's approval ratings continue to slide and voters express concerns tied to the economy, inflation, rising fuel costs and the Iran war.
Iowa had been thought to be a safe spot for Republicans, having last elected a Democrat to the Senate in 2008 and to the governor's mansion in 2006. The state also backed Trump in all three of his White House runs, including by 13 points in 2024. But as Democrats have gained momentum, the state became a prime target as one of the four GOP seats they needed to flip—while defending their own—to take control of the upper chamber.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Samantha Beech and Gray R. Thomas
