A progressive Democrat easily flipped an Iowa state senate seat that President Trump won by 10% in the latest sign of a blue-leaning national political environment.
Catelyn Drey, a 37-year-old marketing executive, trounced Republican Christopher Prosch by about 11% in to replace a GOP lawmaker who recently died in office in the district centered on Sioux City in the mostly rural northwest corner of the state.
The win breaks the Republican supermajority in Iowa’s upper legislative chamber, which the GOP now controls by a still-overwhelming 33-17 margin.
Drey, who lives in Sioux City with her husband and daughter, vowed to focus on kitchen table issues.
“Overwhelmingly the main frustration point that I am hearing is that we have an affordability crisis, whether that’s housing, child care or health care,” Drey told the Des Moines Register. “And folks are really feeling that in their pocketbooks and in their spending decisions.”
Democrats have mostly dramatically over-performed expectations in off-year elections nationwide in what could signal a blue wave in the upcoming 2026 midterm congressional elections.
They’ve done especially well in Iowa, winning a couple of solidly red state legislative districts and coming close in others.
The Hawkeye state has trended sharply to the right in recent election cycles and Trump easily beat Democrat Kamala Harris last November.
But the president won’t be on the ballot in 2026, giving Democrats hope they could put up to three House seats and the state’s U.S. Senate seat held by Sen. Joni Ernst in play, especially if she retires.
In Georgia, a Democrat won about 40% in a special election in the deep-red northwest part of the state, another overperformance although she faces a tough fight to actually win the seat in a run-off against a GOP candidate.
