ICYMI: Josh Turek Launches His Campaign for U.S. Senate

“[Turek’s] ability to win as a Democrat in one of the reddest parts of Iowa [is] one of his biggest strengths going into his U.S. Senate campaign”

Council Bluffs, IA – Today, State Rep. and two-time Paralympian Josh Turek launched his campaign for the U.S. Senate, highlighting his record as a bipartisan champion for working families who has won in one of the reddest areas of Iowa because of his ability to work across party lines and relate to Iowans of all political stripes.

Des Moines Register: Democratic state representative and Paralympian Josh Turek running for US Senate in 2026

“I love Iowa,” Turek said in an interview with the Des Moines Register. “Everywhere that I go, certainly in a community like mine, I’m seeing an enormous amount of people struggling, and they’re struggling just to keep food on the table or keep a roof above their head. And they’ve got a government that’s not working for them, and certainly representatives like Joni Ernst are just not working for them.”
Turek said the issues driving his campaign will be “kitchen table issues.”
“We need affordable, accessible health care,” he said. “Folks like Joni Ernst right now with what they’re doing with the big, beautiful bill, we’re looking at losing, not only people losing their health care benefits, but we’re going to lose rural hospitals.”
Turek said he has a unique story, acknowledging that he is “not your standard Senate candidate.”
Turek, who uses a wheelchair, was born with spina bifida and had 21 surgeries before he was 12 years old. He now works for a nonprofit that provides adaptive sports equipment and free summer camps for kids with disabilities.
Turek eked out a victory in his first Iowa House race by a six-vote margin in “a really tough year for Democrats.”
It was a race where he dragged himself up stairs, pulling his wheelchair behind him, in order to knock on doors to talk to potential voters.
In his reelection bid in 2024, Turek won by about 5 percentage points, despite being heavily targeted by Republicans, even as Trump carried the district.
“I’m going to go out there and I’m going to go into every single nook and cranny and corner in these rural communities that Democrats have ignored in a lot of their races and talk about exactly why I am the best candidate, the most electable, and I’m going to talk about the kitchen table issues,” he said.

NBC News: Paralympian Josh Turek launches Iowa Senate run

State Rep. Josh Turek, a former Paralympian with two gold medals, announced he is running for Senate in Iowa […]
“When I was a kid, there was a senator from Iowa that made sure that the doors were open for kids like me,” Turek, who uses a wheelchair, says in his launch video, referencing former Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin, who authored the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Turek described himself as a “proud, commonsense populist,” noting Medicaid will be a top issue in his campaign. He also pointed to his background as a distinction among his primary rivals, noting, “I absolutely do not look like your average senatorial candidate.”
He represented the United States at four Paralympics, winning gold with the wheelchair basketball team in 2016 and 2021. He ran for the state House in 2022, winning his first race by just six votes. Turek won re-election in 2024 even as Trump carried his district, which includes Council Bluffs, Turek’s hometown.
“We are ultimately a commonsense state,” Turek said of Democrats’ recent struggles in the state, noting he has won a Republican-leaning district.

Washington Post Early Brief: The campaign

The Democratic field for Senate in Iowa is growing, with state Rep. Joshua Turek announcing his bid this morning.
“I was born an underdog,” Turek says in the opening of an announcement video that shows him wheeling around his district, pulling himself up a constituent’s stairs and knocking on doors.
Turek told us in an interview that he welcomes a challenge.
“When people talk about winning in Iowa as a Democrat, they will talk about it being too difficult,” he said. “Well, my life has been filled with a lot of adversity.”

Quad City Times: Turek says Iowans want a ‘common-sense, moderate Democrat’ as he announces Senate campaign

State Rep. Josh Turek said the best thing for Iowans is for lawmakers to “move away from this party over country mentality,” as he announced his candidacy for U.S. Senate on Tuesday.
“I love this country. I love Iowa,” Turek said. “I’m seeing an enormous amount of Iowans struggle … with kitchen table issues. That’s with being able to keep food on the table and a roof above their head.”
Turek says his own story and life experiences are what make him stand out from the other Democratic candidates.
Turek said that if elected, he plans to legislate like former Iowa U.S. Senator Tom Harkin, whom he referred to as a “prairie populist.”
Turek was elected to the Iowa House District 20 seat in 2022, winning by just six votes in a district that went to President Donald Trump by 11 points. He won reelection by roughly five points in 2024 when Trump won by eight points. Turek to his ability to win as a Democrat in one of the reddest parts of Iowa as one of his biggest strengths going into his U.S. Senate campaign.

Washington Examiner: Iowa state Rep. Josh Turek joins crowded Democratic primary to oust Joni Ernst

A former Paralympian with two gold medals in wheelchair basketball, Turek represents Council Bluffs in Iowa’s far west. After being born with spina bifida, which his family ties to his father’s Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam, Turek faced 21 surgeries by age 12, and ultimately rose to become a two-time Paralympic gold medalist in wheelchair basketball.
Turek first won his state House seat in 2022 by just six votes. Two years later, he outpaced Democrats across Iowa, running over 13 points ahead of former Vice President Kamala Harris in his district. In a two-minute launch video, he framed himself as an underdog who has found ways to win in Trump country.

Iowa Starting Line: Paralympic gold medalist Josh Turek launches run against US Sen. Joni Ernst

The Iowa state representative, who won twice in Trump territory, is betting his story of overcoming adversity will resonate statewide.
Josh Turek has never been afraid of long odds.
Born with spina bifida after his father’s exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam, Turek endured 21 surgeries by age 12. He then went on to win two Paralympic gold medals for Team USA in wheelchair basketball.
In his successful 2022 run for the state House, he won his seat by just six votes. Two years later, Turek overperformed Democrats in seats across the state, outperforming former Vice President Kamala Harris by more than 13 points in his district.
Turek’s campaign strategy appears to center on his personal story and his focus on healthcare issues. As someone who has navigated the healthcare system his entire life while managing his disability, he speaks about medical costs and access with authority.

KCRG: State Rep. Josh Turek Announces Run for U.S. Senate

State Representative Josh Turek, a Council Bluffs Democrat in his second term and two-time Paralympic gold medalist in basketball, announced Tuesday that he will seek the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in 2026.
Turek carried his Council Bluffs legislative district in back-to-back elections, a district that Donald Trump, a Republican, won in the presidential race. Turek won his first election in 2022 by just six votes.
His launch video highlighted the physical and financial challenges that he has had to overcome. Turek said that he was born with spinal bifida, endured 21 surgeries by age 12, and uses a wheelchair.

@AdamWren on X/Twitter: A different kind of launch video from the latest Democrat to join Iowa’s Senate race.

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