Iowa Senator Joni Ernst Will not run in 2026, opening key Senate race

Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst has decided she will not run for a third term in 2026, according to people familiar with her decision. She has been thinking about this for months and only recently started telling her close friends that she plans to retire, claims reports.

Multiple sources say Ernst is planning to make her official announcement next Thursday. Her retirement means Iowa will have an open Senate seat in 2026, which is expected to spark a major race, as stated by reports.

Iowa Senate race 2026

Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson is already preparing to join the Senate race, according to one GOP official. Democrats have also started lining up for the seat. State Sen. Zach Wahls, state Rep. Josh Turek, and Des Moines School Board chairwoman Jackie Norris are all running, as reported by CBS.


Earlier this month, Ernst avoided giving a clear answer on whether she would run again, but she told Republicans that Iowa would remain a red state. At the Westside Conservative Club, she said about the Democrats entering the race: “Bring it on, folks. Because at the end of the day, Iowa is going to be red”, as stated by CBS report.

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The White House had hoped Ernst would run again, instead of joining other Republicans who are leaving the Senate, such as Thom Tillis from North Carolina, Tommy Tuberville from Alabama, and Mitch McConnell from Kentucky.

Another Republican, Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, has announced she is running for governor, although her Senate term does not expire until 2030. People close to Ernst say she had always planned to serve only two terms in the Senate. They say she believes she has achieved what she set out to do and now wants to move to the private sector, as per the CBS report.

Joni Ernst political career

Ernst grew up in rural southwestern Iowa and graduated from Iowa State University. She joined Army Reserves and later in the Iowa Army National Guard, retiring as a lieutenant colonel after tours of duty in Kuwait and Iraq. Before winning her Senate seat, she served in local and state government in Iowa. She first won the open U.S. Senate seat in 2014.

In Washington, she rose to the No. 3 leadership position among Senate Republicans and was a loyal supporter of President Donald Trump’s agenda. In 2016, Trump even interviewed her as a possible choice for vice president, but Ernst later withdrew from consideration, as mentioned in the report by CBS.

FAQs

Q1. Why is Joni Ernst not running for Senate again?
Joni Ernst says she planned to serve only two terms, has met her goals, and now wants to move to the private sector.

Q2. Who is running for the Iowa Senate seat in 2026?
Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson is expected to run, and Democrats Zach Wahls, Josh Turek, and Jackie Norris have already joined the race.