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Washington — Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek defeated GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson in the Iowa Senate race, CBS News projects, in a major pickup for Democrats as they seek to take control of the upper chamber.
Turek, 47, is a former wheelchair basketball Paralympian and state representative who campaigned on his record of working across the aisle, and sought what was initially viewed as a long-shot bid for the seat in the U.S Senate after GOP Sen. Joni Ernst announced she wouldn’t seek reelection.
But the race proved more competitive than expected, despite the state’s rightward shift in recent years, as the Trump administration’s trade policies, the unpopular war in Iran and high gas and diesel prices hit Iowans especially hard.
Hinson, 43, is a former local news anchor who has represented Iowa in the House since 2021 and initially vowed to be President Trump’s “top ally” in the Senate. Hinson had to tread a fine line as she pitched her candidacy in the Hawkeye State. In the weeks ahead of the election, Hinson called for the war to be brought to a “successful and immediate end,” though she had opposed efforts in Congress to rein in the president’s war powers. And during a debate in October, while she said she’ll be the president’s ally when it’s “important for Iowa,” she also pledged to “push back on him.”
In the leadup to election day, polls showed Hinson and Turek locked in a tight race, forcing both sides to spend heavily in the state.
Once a swing state, Iowa hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2008, and Mr. Trump won the state by 13 points in 2024.
The projected victory brought Democrats a fifth flip, giving them enough seats to secure a majority. Despite a map that had initially looked favorable to Republicans, steep headwinds emerged for the party as competitive races cropped up in reliably red states like Iowa in recent months, throwing the GOP’s hold on the upper chamber into question.
Democrat Rob Sand won the governor’s race in Iowa.