Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek is projected to defeat Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson in Iowa's U.S. Senate election, according to CBS News, flipping a Republican seat as Democrats pursue control of the chamber. The result marks a major gain for the party in a state that has moved to the right in recent years.

Turek, 47, entered a contest that initially appeared to offer Democrats little chance of victory. A former wheelchair basketball Paralympian who serves in the state legislature, he emphasized his record of working with members of both parties. The seat became open after Republican Sen. Joni Ernst announced that she would not run for reelection.

Iowa's recent electoral history underscored the challenge facing Turek. The state, formerly a presidential battleground, had not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2008. President Trump carried Iowa by 13 percentage points in 2024, but the Senate contest became more competitive than initially expected.

The race unfolded as Iowans were hit particularly hard by the Trump administration's trade policies, high gasoline and diesel costs, and the unpopular war in Iran. Polling ahead of Election Day showed a close contest between Turek and Hinson, prompting heavy spending by both sides as they fought for the seat.

Hinson, 43, is a former local television news anchor who has served in the U.S. House since 2021. Early in her Senate campaign, she promised to be Trump's "top ally" in the chamber. As the election approached, however, she faced the challenge of explaining both her support for the president and where she would challenge him.

In the weeks before the vote, Hinson urged a "successful and immediate end" to the Iran war, despite having opposed congressional efforts to limit Trump's war powers. At an October debate, she said she would support the president when it was "important for Iowa," while also promising to "push back on him."

The projected Iowa result moves Democrats closer to a Senate majority, though it does not establish control of the chamber. Republicans began the election cycle with an apparently favorable map, but competitive races emerged in reliably Republican states, including Iowa, in recent months, putting their majority in doubt.

Democrats also won Iowa's gubernatorial election, with Rob Sand taking the governor's race.