1:16Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines, Iowa.Mihai Andritoiu/Adobe Stock
National Democrats are lauding Tuesday’s special election outcome for the Iowa State Senate, as Democrat Catelin Drey flipped a seat President Donald Trump had secured by 11 points in 2024, shattering the GOP’s supermajority in the chamber.
Republicans contend the modest-turnout contest will not mirror electorate patterns in upcoming midterm elections, and assert the outcome was buoyed by an influx of cash and ground troops deployed from the Democratic National Committee.
Still, the verdict could serve as an early red flag for the GOP, hinting that Democratic enthusiasm might be surging ahead of next year’s ballot battles that will decide congressional control.
Drey secured 55 % of ballots cast, while Republican Christopher Prosch captured 44 %, according to preliminary tallies from the Woodbury County Auditor’s Office.
“For the fourth straight special election, Iowans chose change,” Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart declared following Drey’s win.
“Our state is hungry for a new course and Iowa Democrats will continue advancing contenders who deliver stronger representation for Iowans,” Hart continued.
Catelin Drey, Democratic nominee for the Iowa State Senate, appears in her campaign advertisement.Catelin Drey Campaign
DNC chair Ken Martin said Wednesday that the party marshaled more than 30,000 volunteers to bolster Drey and Iowa Democrats.
In a statement hailing Drey’s triumph, Martin declared Iowans are “warning Republicans loud and clear: anyone championing Trump’s deeply unpopular, hard-right platform has no business leading Iowa families.”
“That’s why all year, voters have been seating Democrats ready to fight for working people. Never forget: when Democrats organize everywhere, we win everywhere—today proves it again,” Martin remarked.
This marks Democrats’ second special-election pickup in Iowa this year. In January, they wrested another GOP-held Iowa State Senate district Trump carried by 21 points last November.
Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines, Iowa.Mihai Andritoiu/Adobe Stock
Tuesday’s victory carries tangible consequences for governance: stripped of a supermajority, Republicans now require bipartisan backing to confirm the governor’s nominees.
Iowa Republican Party chair Jeff Kaufman, on social media, brushed aside the Democratic success.
“National Democrats craved a win so intensely they unleashed 30,000 volunteers and an ocean of cash to prevail by a few hundred votes in a state-senate special,” Kaufman wrote on X. “If @DNC believes Iowa has suddenly swung back their way, they should bring back the caucuses.”
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
