Iowa Midterm Elections: Republicans Set To Sweep Governor, Senate?

Republicans at the top of the Iowa ballot were ahead in the polls as voting got underway Tuesday.

According to a Des Moines Register poll from Oct. 31- Nov. 3, incumbent Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, 89, is leading the race against Democrat Mike Franken by 12 points. Fifty-three percent of likely voters say they are voting for Grassley and 41% say they are voting for Franken. Grassley has widened the gap since an October poll showed the Republican with a three-point lead.

Iowa's gubernatorial race is also swinging in favor of Republicans, according to another Register poll taken over the same period. Incumbent Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds holds a 17-point lead over Democrat Deidre DeJear. Reynolds is seeking her second full-term as governor. She previously served as lieutenant governor from 2011 to 2017.

Iowans are also voting to fill slots in Congress and the state legislature. Additionally, races for attorney general, auditor, agriculture secretary, treasurer and secretary of state will be decided. A constitutional amendment to expand gun rights is also on the ballot.

Polls close at 8 p.m. local time.

Republicans swept the Iowa elections in 2020. Currently, the midwestern state has two Republican senators, a Republican governor and three of four House members are Republicans. The Republican party also holds a majority in the state legislature.

Republicans' surge in the polls occured after a recent "Save America" rally in the western city of Sioux Falls. It featured former President Donald Trump, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene as well as candidates Reynolds and Grassley.

Grassley and Trump Iowa Rally

"This is the year we're going to take back the House," Trump said at the rally. "We're going to take back the Senate. We're going to take back America. And in 2024 ― most importantly ― we're going to take back our magnificent White House. We're going to take it back. We should have never left."

Grassley is seeking his eighth term. If elected, he will be the most senior member of the Senate.

"If I'm reelected to the United States Senate, I will be No. 1 in the United States Senate," Grassley said in an Oct. 6 debate. "And my opponent will be number 100."

His opponent, Franken, 64, is a native western Iowan and former Navy admiral who served as the White House and Senate liaison for the Navy. If elected, Franken will be the highest-ranking military officer to serve in the Senate.

Other closely watched races in the state include the four U.S. House races and the first election with newly drawn congressional districts.