(Hoover State Office Building - KIWA Staff Stock Photo)Des Moines, Iowa (RI) — GOP incumbents who’ve been serving as the state’s Ag Secretary, State Treasurer and Secretary of State have won re-election, while two Democrats have defeated Republicans in the races for state auditor and attorney general. Unofficial results show Democrat Nate Willems finished a little less than two percent ahead of Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, who was seeking a second term. Willems says his victory, alongside other Democrats on the 2026 ticket, will rebalance Iowa politics.
Willems is an attorney who made combating wage theft the centerpiece of his campaign. He pledges to refocus the office on helping regular Iowans.
Secretary of State Paul Pate won a nearly five-and-a-half point victory over Democrat Ryan Peterman. Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig finished just over five points ahead of Democratic challenger Chris Jones. Roby Smith, the Republican who’s served one term as State Treasurer, had a one-point win over Democrat John Norwood. And Democrat Tyler Wettack has been elected to be Iowa’s next state auditor. Unofficial results show Wettack had about 10 thousand more votes than Republican Chris Cournoyer, who conceded the race Wednesday afternoon. The races for state treasurer and state auditor were close, but not close enough to the narrow margin of 15-hundredths of a percent or lower that’s required for a statewide recount.
