The iowa delegation

congressional officials …

Iowa is a small delegation state with a very red state flavor. All members are Republicans, but several have close-margin districts to manage.

Of the six members, three are male, three are female, and none is minority representation through the end of the year.

Two delegation members are female Army Lieutenant Colonels, and one is Air National Guard, meaning one-half of this delegation are veterans. 

None are lawyers, and one holds a medical degree.  Five graduate degrees were conferred to members of the delegation.

The average tenure for the delegation is 3.16 terms, assuming everyone completes their service through the end of 2026. The longest-serving member of Congress since 1980 and is the longest-serving Republican Senator in U.S. history.

When you look at these profiles, we have given each a letter grade for their effort this Congress, based on various factors, which you will find in What Is Thomas Looking For? These letter grades are probably pretty familiar to you if you have ever been a school student (we hope the answer to that is we all have!)

If you see a meager score for a particular member, it will probably be due to one or two key factors: ethics challenges or anti-democratic behavior.

• Republicans have been hit hard on their lack of push back on former and now current President Trump and their support of election denying in the 2020 presidential campaign. The unanswered soaring deficit on their watch, the dismantling of allied relationships around the globe, and opposition to funding anti-authoritarian initiatives. The denial of climate change weighs heavily on us as well. We make no secret that transparency and Government in the Sunshine are important to us, and we further argue that some have been awful stewards of this category. None of the six current Iowa delegation members voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results the same evening as Trump supporters stormed the United States Capitol.

• Democrats have been hit hard for their lack of progress on key matters because they do control the United States Senate and have a razor-close margin in the U.S. House of Representatives. They have not been, in our opinion, innovative or necessarily insistent on finding rational, reasonable solutions to the problems plaguing the American public today. We want to see more and better.

• Both have been dinged for being too partisan and not collaborative where evident. In our opinion, being too doctrinaire or an obstructionist to good government in the 21st century does not get one a good grade from Thomas.

We also indicate what we believe might be the outcome of these Members’ 2026 elections today. One of the United States Senators is up for re-election this season.

Our prospect ratings fall into three categories:

• Safe Bet - which means what it means. These members of Congress are running strong and look to be overwhelming prospects for re-election at this time. However, we reserve the right to re-categorize their chances if necessary.

• It’s A Race - means this race is too close to call, and we can not reasonably predict who will win this seat.

• Nudging - means the seat is leaning one way or another for this candidate. We have just a small number of current members of Congress in this category. Stay tuned!

So, would you like to meet these fascinating Iowans? If so, keep reading on!

what is thomas looking for?

There are a few vulnerable races in Iowa for Thomas to watch in 2024, although all are nudging Republican:

• IA01 - Mariannette Miller-Meeks’ seat (Incumbent R - Nudging R)

• IA03 - Zack Nunn’s seat (Incumbent R - Nudging)

the senators

United States Senator charles grassley (r)

Eight-term United States Senator Charles Grassley is Iowa’s senior senator as well as President Pro Tempore Emeritus of the Senate.  He is the longest-serving Republican Senator in congressional history.  A graduate of the University of North Iowa with a graduate degree as well, Senator Grassley is chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, a member of the Senate Budget Committee; the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee; the Joint Committee on Taxation; and the Finance Committee.  The Senator is married and the father of five.

Thomas Take: Not Up for Re-election in 2026

Thomas Rank: C

Website

United states senator joni ernst (R)

Iowa’s junior senator is serving her second term in the U.S. Senate and serves on the Armed Services Committee; the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee; the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee; and is chair of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee.  Ernst was a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army during her career.  The divorced mother of one graduated from Iowa State University and has a graduate degree from Columbus State University.

Thomas Take: Up for Re-election in 2026

Thomas Rank: C

Website

the representatives