With ample time to recover from the 2025 legislative session, elected officials are getting back to work in the interim. Major updates include a new Iowa House Majority Leader, staff changes in the Office of the Governor, the Iowa DOGE Task Force, and the 2026 election.
Election Watch 2026
After Governor Reynolds announced she would not seek re-election in 2026, interested parties began to throw their hats into the ring. Others have publicly announced their intentions not to run. Below is the field as it stands as of publishing:
| Governor | ||
| Confirmed Running | Publicly Considering | Not Running |
| State Auditor Rob Sand (D)State Rep. Eddie Andrews (R)Brad Sherman (R)Julie Stauch (D)Paul Dahl (D) Adam Steen (R) | U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra (R, Exploratory Committee)State Sen. Mike Bousselot (R, Exploratory Committee) | U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn (R)U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson (R)Attorney General Brenna Bird (R)Speaker Pat Grassley (R)Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig (R) |
Other individuals running for state-wide office include:
| Attorney General | Nate Willems (D)Attorney General Brenna Bird (R, Incumbent) |
| Secretary of State | Secretary of State Paul Pate (R, Incumbent)Ryan Peterman (D) |
| State Auditor | Lieutenant Governor Chris Cournoyer (R)Abigail Maas (R) |
In 2026, all four U.S. House seats are up for election, as well as one Senate seat.
| IA-01 | Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R, Incumbent, No Public Announcement)David Pautsch (R)Christina Bohannan (D)Bob Krause (D)Travis Terrell (D)Taylor Wettach (D) |
| IA-02 | Rep. Ashley Hinson (R, Incumbent, No Public Announcement)Kathy Dolter (D)Clint Twedt-Ball (D) |
| IA-03 | Rep. Zach Nunn (R, Incumbent)State Rep. Jennifer Konfrst (D)State Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott (D)Xavier Carrigan (D) |
| IA-04 | State Rep. Matt Windschitl (R)Kyle Larsen (R)Chris McGowan (R)Ryan Rhodes (R)Ashely WolfTornabane (D)Stephanie Steiner (D) |
| Senate | Sen. Joni Ernst, (R, Incumbent, No Public Announcement)Jim Carlin (R)Joshua Smith (R)State Sen. Zach Wahls (D)State Rep. Josh Turek (D)Jackie Norris (D)Nathan Sage (D)Thomas Laehn (L) |
Q2 Fundraising Information
Fundraising is a key signal in congressional campaigns. Strong fundraising demonstrates support for a candidate, builds name recognition, and allows access to expensive media markets. These numbers are an early gauge of a candidate’s viability and momentum. High fundraising numbers can attract endorsements, media attention, and additional donors, which creates a cycle of visibility and credibility.
That’s why campaign finance reports are closely monitored: they often hint at which races are heating up and who’s gaining ground. Below are the available numbers for the second-quarter reporting of races in Iowa. Unlisted candidates for federal office either did not file, announced after the Q2 reporting deadline, or did not meet the $5,000 reporting threshold.
| US House District Iowa 1 | ||
| Candidate | Amount Raised Q2 | Reported Cash on Hand |
| Mariannette Miller-Meeks (i) (R) | $1,310,323.72 | $1,992,818.20 |
| David Pautsch (R) | $9,250 | $12,946.32 |
| Christina Bohannan (D) | $780,267.55 | $819,587.88 |
| US House District Iowa 2 | ||
| Candidate | Amount Raised Q2 | Reported Cash on Hand |
| Ashley Hinson (i) (R) | $745,266.32 | $2,825,332.15 |
| Kevin Techau (D) WITHDRAWN | $142,300.20 | $68,198.55 |
| US House District Iowa 3 | ||
| Candidate | Amount Raised Q2 | Reported Cash on Hand |
| Zach Nunn (i) (R) | $471,070.47 | $1,299,597.86 |
| Sarah Trone-Garriot (D) | $520,800.25 | $376,708.21 |
| Jennifer Konfrst (D) | $251,045.96 | $170,078.31 |
| US House District Iowa 4 | ||
| Candidate | Amount Raised Q2 | Reported Cash on Hand |
| Ryan Melton (D) WITHDRAWN | $13,525 | $9,976.49 |
| US Senate | ||
| Candidate | Amount Raised Q2 | Reported Cash on Hand |
| Joni Ernst (i) (R) | $593,645.67 | $3,404,497.04 |
| Jim Carlin (R) | $8,300 | $711.42 |
| Nathan Sage (D) | $709,396.38 | $334,382.71 |
| Zach Wahls (D) | $656,637.90 | $626,349.86 |
| JD Scholten (D) | $175,622.45 | $156,601.77 |
| Thomas Laenn (L) | $2,684.44 | $17,392.64 |
Kaufmann Elected House Majority Leader
After announcing his run for Congress in Iowa’s fourth congressional district, Representative Matt Windschitl vacated his role as Iowa House Majority Leader. On August 4, the Iowa House Republicans elected Representative Bobby Kaufmann to fill the leadership vacancy. Majority Leader Kaufmann was elected to the Iowa House in 2012 and most recently served as chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. This change in leadership will open the chairmanship of an important committee, especially as property taxes remain a priority issue.
In a public statement, Representative Kaufmann stated:
“This is a role I will not take lightly. I am committed to uniting our caucus to advance policies that strengthen our economy, support our families, and ensure our children will have bright futures. I look forward to working with Speaker Grassley to address the challenges and opportunities facing Iowa with bold, practical solutions.”
The election of Representative Kaufmann is the second major shake-up to Iowa House leadership after House Democrats elected Representative Brian Meyer as Minority Leader following Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst’s entry in the race for Iowa’s third congressional district.
Staff Changes at the Office of the Governor
In her final year as Governor of Iowa, Governor Kim Reynolds announced a number of staff changes. The table below shows the complete list of the Office of the Governor staff as of publishing.
| Name | Title |
| Taryn Frideres | Chief of Staff |
| Jacob Nicholson | Chief Operating Officer |
| Molly Severn | Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Liaison |
| Stan Thompson | Senior Legal Counsel and Administrative Rules Coordinator |
| Emily Russell | Deputy Legal Counsel |
| Megan Hall | Paralegal and Records Custodian |
| Heather Nahas | Communications Director |
| Mason Mauro | Deputy Communications Director and Press Secretary |
| Rachel Ostergren | Deputy Press Secretary |
| Collin Slowey | Chief Speechwriter and Communications Advisor |
| Patrick Tomka | Senior Tax and Economic Policy Advisor |
| Jane Dufoe | Education Policy Advisor |
| Dax Oberreuter | Health Care and Veteran’s Affairs Policy Advisor |
| Laura Book | Workforce and Public Safety Policy Advisor and Deputy Legislative Liaison |
| Gary Wynne | Agriculture and Energy Policy Advisor |
| Michelle Haupts | Director of Scheduling |
| Madi Willis | Director of the Office for State-Federal Relations |
| Nick Tansey | Boards and Commissions Director |
| Annie Hayes | Executive Assistant to the Governor |
| Piper Boysen | Special Assistant to the Lieutenant Governor |
| Anna Hartzog | Constituent Services Director |
| Kate Schreier | Constituent Services Liaison |
Iowa DOGE Task Force Convenes
The Iowa DOGE Task Force met on Wednesday, August 6, to discuss ideas for government efficiency within the state. The Iowa DOGE Task Force was created by Governor Reynolds at the start of 2025 with a stated mission to “expand on what Iowa has previously done to focus on the core function of government and reduce the cost of government at all levels.”
At this meeting, the task force unveiled and discussed the following 45 ideas:
Workforce Workgroup
- Employer-Driven Modernization and Alignment of Iowa Workforce Funding
- Consolidate duplicative programs
- Streamline fragmented funding streams
- Create employer-driven, ROI workforce training funds
- Align tuition assistance programs with retention incentives
- Implement biennial program review and program sunset process
- Improve System Coordination and Employer Engagement
- Establish policies and processes for employer-led program design
- Launch a “Red Tape Hotline” to report workforce system inefficiencies
- Create business-led review panels to evaluate program effectiveness
- Expand Work-Based Learning and Upskilling Pathways
- Expand apprenticeships, internships, and pre-apprenticeships
- Support employer-led upskilling for incumbent workers
- Scale Training and Program Capacity
- Incentivize and credential more instructors across sectors for high-demand programs
- Support hybrid and short-form credential models at scale
- Invest in facilities and delivery models to meet labor demand
Technology Workgroup
- Operational and Process Efficiency
- Robotic process automation
- Vendor-managed or shared services
- Platform consolidation
- Legislative updates to remove outdated legal requirements
- Leverage AI for improved efficiency
- Fraud Prevention
- Technology-driven fraud detection through centralized standards and tools
- Local Government Enablement
- Enable use of shared state technology platforms
- Establish consolidated accounting systems
- Enable AI incorporation
- Establish legislative mandates for standard-setting
- Citizen Experience Improvements
- Streamline systems, simplify forms and processes, and enable citizen feedback
- UI/UX modernization
- Procurement Reform
- Procurement streamlining and centralization
- Formalize cloud strategy
- Data Governance and Reporting
- Establish statewide data architecture and governance model, including standards and policies for AI
- Reform retention policies
- Cross-agency reporting and analytics framework with AI integration
Return on Taxpayer Investment Workgroup
- Education
- Align K-12 funding to outcomes and workforce readiness
- Modernize Iowa’s teacher compensation system to reward excellence and improve student outcomes
- Expand regional shared services to improve efficiency and reinvest in classroom instruction
- Local Government
- Amend Iowa Code to allow cities with over 50,000 residents the option to elect to become independent cities
- Advance realignment of select county-delivered services to state administration
- Recommend grants for localities exploring regional service delivery
- Merge the County Treasurer and County Recorder functions in each county into a single office
- Government Employee Optimization
- Align public sector employee compensation and benefits with the private sector – defined contribution program instead of defined benefit
- Expand access to professional development to build a future-ready workforce
- Modernize hiring pathways and intern conversion to attract and retain early-career talent
- Additional Matters
- Water and wastewater infrastructure reform
- Ensure efficient state property management
- Eliminate requirement of public notices and publications in newspapers
- Create a state-level master contracts portal for local government usage
- Permit the sale of title insurance in Iowa
In response to the August meeting, many Iowa Republicans in the legislature published statements stating their disagreement with any idea that would reduce IPERS (Iowa’s largest pension system) benefits. One such Republican is House Public Safety Committee Chair Mike Vondran who posted on Facebook that he has “no interest in making any changes nor would [he] support any effort.”
None of the preliminary recommendations have been finalized or voted upon. The task force is expected to make official recommendations to Governor Reynolds at the end of September.
Iowa National Guard Immigration Enforcement
Following a request from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Governor Reynolds directed the Iowa National Guard to begin a supportive federal Title 32 mission. Starting September 8, this mission will be conducted alongside Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The request directs twenty Iowa National Guard soldiers to provide support to Iowa ICE officials to enforce immigration laws in the state. The mission is authorized through November 15.
In a statement accompanying the announcement, Governor Reynolds wrote:
“Just as we supported Texas when the Biden Administration left them to defend the border, Iowa will continue to assist in the enforcement of federal immigration laws… By providing administrative and logistical support, the Iowa National Guard will free up local ICE officials to continue their work outside the office to enforce the law and keep our state safe.”
Executive Order 14
On Saturday, August 16, at STEM Day at the Iowa State Fair, Governor Kim Reynolds signed Executive Order 14, directing the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council “to ensure that every Iowa student in every geographic location and from every background has access to cutting-edge educational opportunities.”
The Council was established by Governor Terry Branstad in July 2011 and chaired by then Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds with the goal to develop a pipeline of K-12 students for careers in STEM. In the press release to announce the executive order, Governor Reynold stated:
“Over the past 14 years, the state has provided cutting-edge STEM materials, programs, and work-based learning opportunities for countless Iowa students… Even so, the nature of STEM continues to change, and with it the nature of work. Advancements in AI and IT are impacting virtually every career in the market. If we want the next generations of Iowans to be prepared for life outside the classroom, we need to begin equipping them now.”
