Who is running in Linn County, Iowa in 2026
- Board of Supervisors, District 2
- Sami Scheetz and Rex W. Meyer
- County Treasurer
- Brent C. Oleson and Paul Talley
- U.S. Senator
- Josh Turek, Ashley Hinson and Thomas Laehn
- Governor / Lieutenant Governor
- Rob Sand / Dave Muhlbauer and Zach Lahn / Derek Wulf
- Secretary of State
- Ryan Peterman and Paul D. Pate
- Attorney General
- Nate Willems and Brenna Bird
- Auditor of State
- Taylor Wettach and Chris Cournoyer
- Treasurer of State
- John Norwood and Roby Smith
- Secretary of Agriculture
- Chris Jones and Mike Naig
- U.S. Representative, District 2
- Lindsay James, Joe Mitchell, Rick Stewart and Dave Bushaw
- Iowa Senate District 37
- Molly Donahue and Randy Marzen
- Iowa Senate District 39
- Liz Bennett and Edward Bernie Hayes
- Iowa House District 79
- Tracy Ehlert and Barclay Woerner
- Iowa House District 83
- Mike Bergman and Cindy Golding
- Iowa House District 84
- Polly Denison and Thomas Gerhold
Linn County
Supervisor and county office races in Iowa are partisan. Cedar Rapids, Marion and the school boards elect in odd years, so there are no city council or school board races this fall.
Board of Supervisors, District 2
Vote for oneSupervisor races in Iowa are partisan. Scheetz was appointed in 2025 to finish Ben Rogers's term, so this is his first time on the ballot for the seat.
Sami Scheetz
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratLeft the Iowa House when he was appointed to replace Ben Rogers on the board. Opposes using eminent domain for CO2 pipelines and is endorsed by AFSCME Council 61 and the Hawkeye Area Labor Council.
Sources: Wikipedia, Sway, Campaign site
Rex W. Meyer
Not enough info RepublicanSays data centers, power plants and carbon pipelines need local oversight and that "our aquifers need protection." Wants the county to stick to core functions to hold down taxes; we found no record or endorsements to judge him on.
Sources: Campaign site, Ballot Brief
County Treasurer
Vote for oneBrent C. Oleson
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratSpent 12 years as a supervisor focused on parks, trails and water quality before becoming treasurer. Endorsed by AFSCME Council 61 and the Iowa Federation of Labor.
Sources: Little Village, Sway, Ballot Brief
Paul Talley
Not enough info RepublicanHas business and HR degrees from DeVry and Mount Mercy. We found no campaign site, platform or record.
Sources: Ballot Brief, Ballotpedia
Unopposed county races
No contestBoard of Supervisors, District 1 (Kirsten Running-Marquardt, Democrat), County Recorder (Carolyn Siebrecht, Democrat) and County Attorney (Nicholas G. Maybanks, Democrat). Township, Agricultural Extension Council and Soil and Water Commissioner races are not covered.
District judges (retention)
Not profiledYes or no on keeping Sixth Judicial District judges; your sample ballot lists the names. We haven't profiled judges yet. The Court of Appeals judges on every Iowa ballot are in the State and federal section.
State and federal
Linn County is split among several Iowa House and Senate districts; only odd-numbered Senate seats are up this year. Check the county lookup tool to see which are yours. The whole county is in the 2nd Congressional District.
U.S. Senator
Vote for oneOpen seat: Sen. Joni Ernst is not running again.
Josh Turek
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratCalls himself a "common-sense" Democrat and won't take corporate PAC money. Wants to ban members of Congress and their spouses from trading stock, and is endorsed by Tom Harkin, the Iowa Federation of Labor and the state teachers' union.
Sources: Campaign platform, Campaign endorsements, Wikipedia
Ashley Hinson
Not good people RepublicanEndorsed by Donald Trump, and her campaign says she is "working alongside President Trump." In September 2026 a watchdog filed a House ethics complaint asking whether she used her office to help her husband's insurance trade group; her campaign says his role there was unpaid.
Sources: Wikipedia, Campaign site, Iowa Starting Line
Thomas Laehn
Not enough info LibertarianGreene County's attorney and the first Libertarian elected to a partisan office in Iowa. Says Congress has let presidents of both parties take its power, and that Republicans in Congress "are more loyal to Trump than they are to their own institution." Calls the carbon pipeline "the biggest boondoggle in the history of our state."
Sources: Bleeding Heartland, Bleeding Heartland, Campaign site, Bleeding Heartland, Ballotpedia
Governor / Lieutenant Governor
Vote for oneOpen seat: Gov. Kim Reynolds is not running again. Governor and lieutenant governor are elected together as a ticket.
Rob Sand / Dave Muhlbauer
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratAs a prosecutor he convicted the lottery insider behind the $25 million Hot Lotto fraud, and as auditor his office flagged $21 million in misused federal COVID money that the state paid back. Says he would veto "culture war" bills.
Sources: Iowa Capital Dispatch, The Gazette, Wikipedia
Zach Lahn / Derek Wulf
Not good people RepublicanEndorsed by Donald Trump, who called him "more Trump" than his primary opponent, and by Turning Point Action and former Rep. Steve King. The sheriff in Black Hawk County is investigating fraud and theft accusations against Wulf, whose farm business was put under a court-appointed manager in September 2026.
Secretary of State
Vote for oneThe secretary of state runs Iowa elections.
Ryan Peterman
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWants voting made easier for eligible Iowans while keeping elections secure. "I'm not running to be a partisan warrior," he says. Endorsed by the Iowa Federation of Labor and VoteVets.
Sources: Campaign site, Scott County Democrats, iVoterGuide
Paul D. Pate
Compromised RepublicanBrought in online voter registration in 2016 and wrote Iowa's voter ID law. Days before the 2024 election he told county auditors to challenge the ballots of 2,176 people flagged as possible noncitizens, though he agreed most of them were likely citizens.
Sources: Wikipedia, Campaign site, KCRG
Attorney General
Vote for oneNate Willems
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWon a settlement of about $15 million for hospital and clinic workers, and wants the office's first wage enforcement unit. Endorsed by former Attorney General Tom Miller, the Iowa Federation of Labor and the Sierra Club.
Sources: Campaign site, Iowa Podcast, Wikipedia
Brenna Bird
Not good people RepublicanEndorsed by Donald Trump in September 2026. In April 2023 her office stopped the state's practice of paying for emergency contraception for rape victims.
Sources: Iowa Starting Line, Wikipedia
Auditor of State
Vote for oneOpen seat: Auditor Rob Sand is running for governor.
Taylor Wettach
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratRunning on rooting out waste and fraud. Says his federal job was cut by DOGE and that Trump went after his law firm. Endorsed by former Gov. Tom Vilsack and former Attorney General Tom Miller.
Sources: Campaign site, Daily Iowan
Chris Cournoyer
Compromised RepublicanAs a senator she voted for the 2023 law that took away the auditor's power to go to court when state agencies refuse to hand over records, the job she now wants.
Sources: Iowa Public Radio, Wikipedia
Treasurer of State
Vote for oneJohn Norwood
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratHis first priority is protecting IPERS, the public employees' pension fund, from privatization. Also running on paying down debt and returning unclaimed money to Iowans.
Sources: Iowa Public Radio, Campaign site
Roby Smith
Compromised RepublicanSays the state's pooled money fund has earned more than $1 billion since he took office. In the Senate he sponsored the 2021 law that cut early voting from 29 days to 20 and closed the polls an hour earlier.
Sources: Iowa Treasurer, Iowa Capital Dispatch, American Oversight
Secretary of Agriculture
Vote for oneChris Jones
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratCalls Iowa's water quality the "biggest failure of our state government in the history of the state" and wants tighter rules on large livestock operations. Wrote The Swine Republic, a 2025 book on farming and water.
Sources: Iowa Public Radio, Iowa PBS
Mike Naig
Compromised RepublicanBacked by the Iowa Farm Bureau and corn growers' PACs, the industry his office oversees. Funds voluntary cover crop and runoff programs but opposes new water quality rules, saying they would hurt small and mid-sized farms.
Sources: Iowa Public Radio, Iowa Farm Bureau, Iowa Corn
Constitutional amendment and judicial retention
PropositionsWe describe these and don't make recommendations.
- Amendment 1, income tax increases: Requires a two-thirds vote of each house of the Legislature to raise the individual or corporate income tax rate or create a new state tax on income. Local option taxes are exempt, and any lawsuit claiming a tax bill wasn't passed properly must be filed within a year. A yes vote adds that rule; a no vote leaves tax increases at a simple majority.
- Judicial retention: Yes or no on keeping Court of Appeals Judges Sharon Soorholtz Greer, John M. Sandy and Julie A. Schumacher. No Supreme Court justices are up this year. District judges on your ballot vary by county. We haven't profiled judges yet.
U.S. Representative, District 2
Vote for oneOpen seat: Ashley Hinson is running for the U.S. Senate. All of Linn County is in this district. In September, Bushaw told the Washington Reporter that James had offered him a job in her office to get him out of the race; her campaign called it "a complete lie."
Lindsay James
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratWon't take corporate PAC money and wants to overturn Citizens United. Endorsed by the Iowa Federation of Labor, the Iowa Teamsters, Giffords and Planned Parenthood Action Fund.
Sources: Wikipedia, MoveOn, Campaign endorsements, Washington Reporter
Joe Mitchell
Not good people RepublicanJoined Trump's 2024 transition team, then served in his administration, and has Trump's endorsement. Backs a ban on stock trading by members of Congress and says he takes no corporate PAC money.
Sources: Wikipedia, Iowa Public Radio, Campaign site
Rick Stewart
Not enough info LibertarianIn June a state panel threw out a Republican-backed challenge to the name on his filing, and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called him to urge him to consider leaving the race. We found little on what he'd do in Congress.
Sources: Iowa Fact Check, Little Village
Dave Bushaw
Seems like good people IndependentWas a rural field organizer for Bernie Sanders in 2019, and wants to repeal Iowa's right-to-work law and treat health care as a right. Endorsed by the Forward Party; hasn't said which party he'd caucus with.
Sources: Iowa Public Radio, Forward Party
Iowa Senate District 37
Vote for oneMolly Donahue
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratIn 2025 she filed a bill to bar schools that get state aid from using discriminatory mascots. Endorsed by the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa Action Fund, whose candidates oppose school vouchers and oppose local police cooperating with ICE.
Sources: Wikipedia, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, Ballotpedia
Randy Marzen
Not enough info RepublicanRuns on property taxes, "parental rights" in schools and support for police. We found no endorsements or public record to judge him on.
Sources: Campaign site, Ballotpedia
Iowa Senate District 39
Vote for oneLiz Bennett
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratThe first openly LGBTQ woman in the Iowa Legislature. Her bill to ban the gay and trans panic defense has passed the Iowa House three times under Republican control.
Sources: Wikipedia, Campaign site
Edward Bernie Hayes
Compromised RepublicanA board member and former board president of the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition, a religious-right group. Ran for this seat in 2022 and lost a 2025 special election for House District 78 to Angel Ramirez.
Sources: iVoterGuide, Ballot Brief, Bleeding Heartland
Iowa House District 79
Vote for oneA 2024 rematch; Ehlert won with 61% last time.
Tracy Ehlert
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratRan a Cedar Rapids child care center for over ten years and is the ranking Democrat on the House Education Committee. Endorsed by the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa Action Fund.
Sources: Wikipedia, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa
Barclay Woerner
Not enough info RepublicanOn the American Family Association's iVoterGuide questionnaire he backs public money following students to private schools and says abortion providers shouldn't get taxpayer funds. We found no endorsements or record.
Sources: iVoterGuide, Ballotpedia
Iowa House District 83
Vote for oneCovers much of rural Linn County.
Mike Bergman
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratHas planted 240 of his acres to native prairie. Calls the 2023 voucher law "the worst law ever enacted in Iowa" and criticizes the state for defunding river nitrate monitoring.
Sources: Campaign site, Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun
Cindy Golding
Not good people RepublicanEndorsed Trump for president in March 2023, well before the caucuses. Endorsed by the NRA, Americans for Prosperity-Iowa and Stand for Health Freedom.
Sources: Wikipedia, Campaign endorsements, Americans for Prosperity
Iowa House District 84
Vote for oneMostly in Benton County, plus part of western Linn County.
Polly Denison
Seems like good people (best choice in this race) DemocratEndorsed by the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa Action Fund, whose candidates oppose school vouchers and oppose local police cooperating with ICE. We found little else on her.
Sources: Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, Ballotpedia
Thomas Gerhold
Compromised RepublicanEndorsed by the NRA, which grades him A. Says he opposes private companies using eminent domain for CO2 pipelines, and voted in 2025 for the Republican election bill HF 954.
Sources: NRA-PVF, Vinton Today, Jim Magdefrau
Unopposed Iowa House seats
No contestDistrict 73 (Elizabeth Wilson), 74 (Eric Gjerde), 77 (Jeff Cooling), 78 (Angel Ramirez) and 80 (Aime Wichtendahl), all Democrats.
Local measures
We describe what each measure does and don't make recommendations. The statewide constitutional amendment is in the State and federal section.
Kirkwood Community College, Public Measure NC
PropositionsUp to $88 million in general obligation bonds, repaid from property taxes across Kirkwood's 18-county district, to renovate and equip buildings with a focus on health sciences, industrial technology, agricultural sciences, and business and IT. Bond questions in Iowa need 60% yes to pass. Full text.
City of Cedar Rapids, Public Measure D
PropositionsUp to $60 million in general obligation bonds for the fire department's facility plan: a new training center, moving Stations 2 and 8, remodeling Stations 4 and 9, rebuilding Stations 5 and 6, buying land, and new fire trucks and equipment. Only Cedar Rapids voters see it. Full text.
City of Ely, Public Measure E
PropositionsUp to $2.25 million in general obligation bonds to build, furnish and equip an expanded city library. Only Ely voters see it. Full text.
More Iowa guides
Governor, statewide offices and ballot measures: Iowa statewide races.
- Scott County: Davenport, Bettendorf, Eldridge, LeClaire, Blue Grass, Walcott, Buffalo, Princeton, Long Grove
- Polk County: Des Moines, West Des Moines, Ankeny, Urbandale, Johnston, Altoona, Clive, Grimes, Windsor Heights, Pleasant Hill, Bondurant, Polk City, Mitchellville, Runnells, Elkhart, Alleman, Sheldahl
- Johnson County: Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty, Tiffin, University Heights, Solon, Swisher, Hills, Lone Tree, Oxford, Shueyville, West Branch (part)