Iowa Senate candidates face off amid flurry of debates

▪ A busy debate night

▪ Zacharia’s rocky start

▪ Trump adds more red state stops

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Iowa Rep. Ashley Hinson (R) and state Rep. Josh Turek (D) went head-to-head for the second and final time Tuesday night, just as early in-person voting is set to start in the battleground.

Iowans are able to cast their ballots at county elections offices and some other locations beginning today, with the toss-up contest for retiring Sen. Joni Ernst’s (R) seat at the top of the ticket. Nexstar affiliate WHO 13 in Des Moines hosted last night’s debate, focusing on issues like affordability and the Iran war. Nexstar also owns The Hill.

In one of the most notable moments of the night, Hinson broke with President Trump on the diesel deal that he made with Russia to import 300,000 tons of the fuel to the U.S. and global marketplace.

“We need to lower gas prices in this country. We need to lower diesel prices, but I don’t think we need to be making a deal with Russia to do it,” Hinson said.

Trump’s announcement has spurred backlash from across the political aisle, including from those who say it amounts to supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and violates federal law. More on that later.

Hinson said high energy costs should be addressed by temporarily lowering the gas tax, looking into a possible diesel rebate program for producers and investing in the U.S.’s biofuels.

Turek responded that this is a rare issue where the candidates agreed. Other parts of the debate weren’t so amicable.

Turek continued his attacks on Hinson over her growing wealth while serving in Congress, in particular her husband’s 2021 sale of his insurance agency to a private equity company. Hinson responded that she doesn’t own any publicly traded stocks and accused Turek of distracting from his own liabilities.

“His lies are beneath him on this race, and he’s muddying the water because he does not want to talk about his own liberal record here,” she said.

Hinson went after Turek for the number of floor votes in the Iowa state House that he missed. Turek acknowledged missing many of the votes but pointed to a busy campaign schedule, saying he’s been meeting with Iowans all over the state.

The Hill’s Caroline Vakil has a rundown of what else you need to know from the debate.

The Iowa showdown was one of about a dozen congressional or gubernatorial debates across the country last night.

Sen. Jon Ossoff (D) and Rep. Mike Collins (R) also met for a second time. Arguably the most notable moment concerned Ossoff’s political future if he holds on to win another term in the Senate.

Ossoff has increasingly been the subject of speculation about 2028 ambitions as his stock has risen within Democratic circles, but he pledged on stage to serve a full six-year term if he wins reelection.

“I have zero interest in running for president. I’m not running for president. I’m running for re-election to the Senate,” he said.

Ossoff has repeatedly denied interest in a White House bid, but that hasn’t quelled the talk. If he were to run, he wouldn’t be the first candidate to do so after ruling out a bid.

That club includes former President Obama, whose rhetorical style has been compared to the young senator. Obama said he wouldn’t run in 2006 before changing course for the 2008 election.

Collins rejected Ossoff’s denial, insisting “he’s running for president.”

Sen. Susan Collins (R) and former state Senate President Troy Jackson (D) found some common ground, just as the Iowa candidates did. Both candidates rejected the president’s tariff war with Canada, saying it’s harming Americans.

They also mostly agreed on the need for guardrails on AI data centers. Collins mentioned her support for the Ratepayer Protection Act, which advocates for the high energy costs associated with the centers to be mitigated. Jackson said he supports either the federal government or the state of Maine implementing more regulations.

Collins responded that it “sounds like Troy and I, oddly enough, are not that far apart on this issue.”

There was plenty of jousting as well in the third of give debates planned in the race.

Jackson continued his strategy of tying Collins to Trump, accusing her of not doing enough to end the Iran war and overturn the president’s tariffs. Collins noted her support for a war powers resolution, though she previously opposed it, and argued she was able to get some items removed from the tariff list.

Affordability has consistently been rated as the top issue on voters’ minds this cycle, regardless of the state.

An exclusive NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ poll released........

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