Open Senate seat up for grabs in Iowa as candidates tout populism, bipartisanship

With days to go until the midterms, President Donald Trump is traveling the country on a red-state blitz to stave off a potential blue wave, including in Iowa, where an open U.S. Senate seat is up for grabs.

Democrats are pinning their hopes on state Rep. Josh Turek, a two-time Paralympic gold medalist, to flip the seat for the first time since 2008. He's running as a centrist on what he calls a "common-sense prairie populist" platform against Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson.

Iowa Republicans hold the governorship, majorities in the statehouse and represent the state's entire congressional delegation. But in a midterm environment broadly seen as unfavorable to Republicans, Democrats see a competitive opportunity to flip control of Congress amid growing economic discontent over rising gas and fertilizer costs in the agriculture-heavy state.

Trump, who is backing Hinson, handily won the state in the last three presidential elections, but Hinson is walking a political tightrope. Though she praised Trump at his Sioux City rally last week for "preserving our country for generations to come," she has criticized the president's recent deal with Russia he said would lower diesel fuel costs. And in September, she reversed her position on Iran, calling for an end to the war.

When asked by ABC News about the Pentagon's timeline for a new offensive after the midterms, Hinson deferred to the commander-in-chief.

"I trust the president and the U.S. military to get this done on the time frame that works right to make sure we can actually achieve the result of making sure Iran does not get a nuclear weapon," Hinson told ABC News' Jon Karl.

On Ukraine, Hinson disagreed with the president's waiving of sanctions against Russia President Vladimir Putin.

"I don't think we should be making any deals with Russia," Hinson said, later adding, "I want to bring all of these conflicts abroad to an end as quickly as possible. I don't think anybody likes forever wars, but certainly we cannot be empowering dictators to win wars."

The congresswoman also took issue with the U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff calling Putin a "humanitarian" last week when Russia released formerly detained American Stephen Hubbard.

"He's a murderer. I don't think we should be making deals with murderers and dictators, and that's why I stood up for Ukraine," Hinson said.

Former President Barack Obama, who twice carried the Hawkeye State, endorsed Turek in July and reminded voters, "I know a little something about winning Iowa."

Will endorsements make a difference?

"Probably not," Turek told ABC News. "One thing I do believe is that we're not a red state. We're a common-sense state that's masqueraded more red than what we actually are."

Turek has leaned into his personal story. The state lawmaker was born with spina bifida due to his father's exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. "I am an example of the generational consequences of these forever wars," he has said.

On Thursday, Turek visited a local manufacturer in Shell Rock, home to some 1,260 people in Butler County, Iowa, which Trump carried by 45 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election. He said too many Democrats have overlooked small communities like this one – areas where some Iowans say they're reeling from the economic fallout of Trump's seesaw tariff policies and the Iran war.

A recent CNN poll found that majorities of likely Iowa voters say Trump's policies have increased their cost of living, that gas prices have caused them hardship and that tariffs are bad for the state.

Hinson told ABC News she is unafraid "to tell [Trump] when I think he's wrong on something."

"I think that's how Iowans expect you to do your job. They don't like empty rhetoric," she added. "They like results here in Iowa, and that's exactly what I've done."

Turek has slammed Hinson for her votes in Congress to continue the war with Iran. But the Democrat has also touted his bipartisan bona fides in ads, promising voters he would work across the aisle, including with Trump, on issues like immigration.

"He's done a better job on the border than Biden," Turek said. "I agree with him that we need to drive private equity out of housing. I would also like to see us drive private equity out of housing, healthcare, and nursing homes. And I agree with him that we should have no tax on tips, overtime, and Social Security."

Turek, who hails from the deep-red city of Council Bluffs, also recently launched a coalition of Republicans backing him, including members of his own family. He told ABC News his father is a two-time Obama voter and three-time Trump voter. His sister, he added, is a registered Republican and he's unsure whether his mother "has ever voted for a Democrat besides me."

Democrats like Turek have also slammed the GOP for voting to pass Trump's signature tax legislation, the "One Big Beautiful Bill," arguing it has threatened rural hospitals and reduced healthcare access, even as the state faces rising cancer rates.

The bill slashed Medicaid funding by $1 trillion over the next 10 years, in part through new work and eligibility requirements. Republicans said their goal is reducing "waste, fraud and abuse" in these programs.

Hinson, pitching herself as a "minivan-driving mom," told ABC News that she knows Iowans are economically struggling and defended the "One Big Beautiful Bill" for delivering tax relief to families. The congresswoman pledged to take more action to lower healthcare premiums and gas prices.

At 43, Hinson could become the youngest elected Republican woman in the U.S. Senate. And like Turek, she's pitching herself as a bipartisan lawmaker, despite her initial campaign promise to be Trump's "strongest ally" if elected.

"I found common ground with President Biden. He and I didn't agree on much, but we were able to get some things done for Iowa, even when I was in the minority," Hinson said. "I'm going to operate that same way, no matter who's in the White House.

In Shell Rock, Turek said that Iowans are telling him they're tired of the "political theater" and "tribalism."

"'I'm struggling to keep food on the table, a roof above my head, pay my electric bill, and keep gas in my tank,'" Turek said voters are telling him. "Can you please go up there and solve problems through policy in a bipartisan way?'"