{"id":127869,"date":"2025-09-02T18:52:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-02T18:52:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/127869\/"},"modified":"2025-09-02T18:52:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T18:52:10","slug":"sen-joni-ernst-of-iowa-confirms-she-will-not-run-for-reelection-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/127869\/","title":{"rendered":"Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa confirms she will not run for reelection in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) \u2014 U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst<\/a> said Tuesday that she will not seek reelection next year, confirming in a video post on social media that she will retire after months of speculation about her plans.<\/p>\n

Ernst\u2019s departure opens up a Senate seat in the state known for its long-serving incumbents. Ernst was first elected in 2014 to the open seat previously held by Tom Harkin, a Democrat who served for 30 years. Republican Chuck Grassley, Iowa\u2019s senior U.S. senator, was first elected to the Senate in 1980.<\/p>\n

Her announcement Tuesday followed reports last week<\/a> that she was expected to announce her retirement in September. In a video, Ernst cited her aging and growing family as a reason for opting out of a reelection bid.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was no easy decision,\u201d Ernst said. \u201cI never imagined this farm girl would have the opportunity to serve as a lieutenant colonel and then a United States senator.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is another unexpected retirement for Senate Republicans as they work to maintain their majority<\/a> in the chamber, with Ernst joining Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who turned down a reelection bid after clashing with President Donald Trump<\/a>. <\/p>\n

It also could have ripple effects down the ballot if third-term Rep. Ashley Hinson from the Cedar Rapids area in eastern Iowa jumps into the race, as is widely expected. Hinson\u2019s decision could also complicate House Republicans\u2019 efforts to keep control as Democrats<\/a> look for opportunities to flip seats in once-competitive<\/a> Iowa, where two of Iowa\u2019s four congressional districts<\/a> have been among the country\u2019s most competitive in recent elections.<\/p>\n

Immediately after Ernst\u2019s announcement, Hinson thanked the senator for her service and previewed her entry into the race, saying Trump needs a \u201cfighter in the Senate who will always have his back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve stood shoulder to shoulder with the President to pass this America First agenda in the House and I would be his strongest ally in the Senate,\u201d Hinson said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.<\/p>\n

Hinson said she would have an announcement soon.<\/p>\n

Two Republicans \u2014 former state Sen. Jim Carlin and veteran Joshua Smith \u2014 had already entered the primary to challenge Ernst.<\/p>\n

Several Democrats are seeking the party\u2019s nomination for the seat, including state Sen. Zach Wahls; state Rep. Josh Turek; Jackie Norris, chair of the Des Moines School Board; and Nathan Sage, a former chamber of commerce president.<\/p>\n

Ernst, Iowa\u2019s first woman elected to Congress, is an Iraq War combat veteran and retired from the Army National Guard as a lieutenant colonel. She served for several years in Senate GOP leadership and was considered a vice presidential contender for Trump\u2019s first White House run.<\/p>\n

But Ernst has faced pressure<\/a> from all sides in the last year. She took heat after signaling a hesitance<\/a> to support one of President Donald Trump\u2019s Cabinet picks. She\u2019s also been one of the faces of Democrats\u2019 campaign against the sprawling tax and spending package<\/a> after she made a retort<\/a> about Medicaid cuts<\/a> at a town hall.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) \u2014 U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst said Tuesday that she will not seek reelection next…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":127870,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[23,81415,7919,12,1070,793,13014,21485,81414,3,111,21490,9287,81413,8638,795,3438,21,19,11162,22,20,25,24],"class_list":{"0":"post-127869","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-ashley-hinson","10":"tag-chuck-grassley","11":"tag-donald-trump","12":"tag-elections","13":"tag-general-news","14":"tag-iowa","15":"tag-joni-ernst","16":"tag-joshua-smith","17":"tag-news","18":"tag-politics","19":"tag-senate-elections","20":"tag-thom-tillis","21":"tag-tom-harkin","22":"tag-u-s-democratic-party","23":"tag-u-s-news","24":"tag-u-s-republican-party","25":"tag-united-states","26":"tag-united-states-of-america","27":"tag-united-states-senate","28":"tag-unitedstates","29":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","30":"tag-us","31":"tag-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127869"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127869\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127870"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}