February 13th, 2026 Len’s Political Note #789 Sarah Trone Garriott Iowa 03
2026 General Election
Sarah Trone Gorriott
Zach Nunn, the Republican incumbent of Iowa 03 wants out. After the April announcement by Governor Kim Reynolds that she would not run for reelection, perhaps thinking he would run for the Senate, Zach Nunn said he would not run for governor. He did not say he planned to run for reelection.
By July, Zach Nunn raised the possibility that he actually would run for Governor. His colleague, Randy Feenstra of Iowa 04, Iowa’s only overwhelmingly Republican district, was thinking of running. In fact, you could say he was actually running. In May, he had put a banner on his website: Randy Feenstra Governor. In July, twenty-five or so well-known Iowans created an account on Donald Trump’s Truth Social titled Randy Feenstra for Governor. Feenstra’s friends had gone to the right place.
After Zach Nunn raised the possibility for his run, he was invited for a chat with the President. After the chat, Zach Nunn said he was not running for governor. I remember the news stories. Zach Nunn gave some thought to running for Feenstra’s abandoned Iowa 04. What a pleasure it would have been for him to run for a seat that was safely Republican. It was not to be. Zach Nunn was talked out of that possibility as well,
Now Zach Nunn faces what he had hoped to avoid – a contest for Iowa 03 during a year that threatens a Blue Wave. His district is viewed as a toss-up. He is an incumbent without a primary opponent, and entered 2026 with $2 million. Zach Nunn faced up to the political work he had to do.
Zach Nunn is preparing for the race. Somebody, probably Zach Nunn, paid for what Laura Belin in Bleeding Heartland describes as a January poll to test messages to find how to tout Zach Nunn and how to deride Sarah Trone Garriott, the Democratic candidate.
Respondents were asked their thoughts about the Des Moines Area Religious Council, of which Sarah Trone Garriott is the Coordinator of Interfaith Engagement, receiving a taxpayer PPP loan of $160,000+ during the Covid pandemic. Belin points out that thousands of non-profits and businesses received similar loans and Sarah Trone Garriott was not in a position to make a decision about seeking the loan.
Respondents were asked their thoughts aabout Sarah Trone Garriot’s votes in the State Senate prohibiting students from participate in sports not aligned with their biological sex and prohibiting gender transition procedures for minors. Belin points out that Sarah Trone Garriott did take those votes, was opposed to the prohibition, and that Republicans spent heavily emphasizing that point in the 2024 election which Sarah Trone Garriott won (though narrowly, by just a few votes).
Respondents were asked their thoughts about her vote in the State Senate against making illegal entry into the United States a crime. Belin points out that Sarah Trone Garriott voted against a bill that would have made illegal re-entry by a previously deported person into the United States a crime.
Nunn asked more questions on ways to campaign against Sarah Trone Garriott and he tested positives about himself. The next two are samples of what he tested.
Respondents were asked about Nunn’s vote in favor of the Working Families Tax Cut which banned Members of Congress from trading individual stocks. Belin points out that the law that was passed did not ban Members of Congress from trading individual stocks.
Respondents were asked about Nunn’s support of efforts to prevent institutional investors from buying single-family homes for rental purposes. Belin points out that Nunn may support such a ban, but has not publicized that support in any of his campaigns.
Sarah Trone Garriott knows her own mind about what position she is running for and what her views are. She is a Democratic politician and a Lutheran minister. Originally from Minneapolis, her BA is from the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth. She has Master’s degrees from the Harvard Divinity School and the Lutheran School of Divinity at Chicago. She was a hospital chaplain for four years and a congregational pastor after that in Virginia and in Iowa.
Since 2017, as noted above, Sarah Trone Garriott has been Coordinator of Interfaith Engagement for the Des Moines Area Religious Council. Her husband teaches at Drake University and they have two children. In 2020 and 2024, she was elected to the Iowa State Senate. Her primary opponent for the 2026 Congressional race has withdrawn from the campaign. Her $850,000 cash balance is not enough for a successful campaign in Iowa. She will need our help between now and November.
Sarah Trone Garriott’s first three issues in her website are
- “Getting Washington working for us – not the political insiders.” She points to having proposed, in the state legislature, term limits and bans on insider stock trading. She proposes for Washington bans on corporate PAC contributions and government transparency. She promises town halls.
- “Growing our economy by investing in people not special interests.” She argues the economy should reward hard work, not hoarding wealth. She promises to invest in apprenticeships, vocational schools, community colleges, and job training programs, broadband in rural areas, and infrastructure that connects people to opportunity.
- “Health care that is affordable and there when you need it.” She deplores Zach Nunn’s vote for massive Medicaid cuts and proposes those cuts be rolled back. The effect of that cut, she says, will be the loss of health insurance for 86,000 Iowans, continued disappearance of rural hospitals and clinics, and higher medical insurance costs due to the failure to extend ACA tax credits. She proposes further prescription medication price negotiation, expansion of medical health and substance abuse treatment, and increased support for rural health providers.
While she does not include it in her website, Sarah Trone Garriott is clear that what ICE is doing in Iowa’s northern neighbor Minnesota is not making America safe. And she has called for an “independent investigation” of the shootings by ICE. She is a contrast to Zach Nunn. She is clear on her issues; clear on why she wants to represent Iowa in Congress.
Zach Nunn may have been dissuaded from running for governor or for running for as easier seat in Congress to win, but he wants to continue to be in elective office. He has his issues. He is pro-life. He has voted for bills that prohibit abortion without exceptions even for occasions when the mother’s life is at risk. He views his proposals to make adoption easier as a contribution to reducing the number of abortions. He is a “strong advocate” for the first and second amendments which he sees as a kind of bedrock for defending families. As for his thoughts about what is going on in Minnesota, Iowa’s immediate neighbor to the north, he says “loss of life in America is always a tragedy.” He adds that everyone “has an obligation to de-escalate as investigations proceed.” He expresses no objection to Cash Patel’s FBI conducting the investigation.
Help Sarah Trone Garriott defeat Zach Nunn and achieve her goals and ours. DONATE to her campaign.
Other Iowa races
Governor
Rob Sand has served 2 terms as State Auditor and is the only Democrat elected state-wide in Iowa. He has raised $9.5 million for the Governor race, double Randy Feenstra’s $4.3 million. A poll in November showed him leading Feenstra by 3 points. Rob Sand will need every dollar he can raise to defeat Randy Feenstra or whichever Republican wins that party’s nomination. DONATE to Rob Sand’s campaign. See Len’s Political Note #746.
Attorney General
Nate Willems has spent his legal career representing workers whose employers have stolen their wages or otherwise cheated them. Help him defeat incumbent Brenna Bird who chose to skip the Governor race and the Senate race. DONATE to Nate Willems campaign.
Secretary of State
Ryan Peterman is a Naval Academy graduate who returned to Iowa after a career as a Naval Aviator, working on national security for the US Senate, and a presence at the Naval Academy intended to promote a culture of ethics. Help him defeat Incumbent Paul Pate who appears to have avoided the paranoia of so many Republican Secretaries of State and does not support Trump’s beliefs about the 2020 election. DONATE to Ryan Peterman.
State Auditor
Taylor Wattach is a trade and national security attorney. He will have either of two Republican opponents: the appointed Lt. Governor Chris Cournoyer whose state senate loss in a January 2025 special election was the beginning of the string of Democratic special election wins or county supervisor Abigail Maas who runs a farm and a flooring company. DONATE to Taylor Wattach’s campaign.
US Congress
IOWA 01 Law Professor and former State Rep Christina Bohannan opposes Incumbent Republican Marionette Miller-Meek in this toss up race. DONATE to Christina Bohannan’s campaign. See Len’s Political Note #737
Iowa 03 State Senator Sarah Trone Garriott opposes incumbent Republican Zach Nunn in this toss up race. DONATE to Sarah Trone Garriott’s campaign.
US Senate
Any of the three Democratic candidates will find it a challenge running against Iowa 02 Congresswoman Ashley Hinton for this open Republican seat. No Republican is challenging her. She has raised a substantial amount of money. The three Democrats, in order of funds raised, from highest to lowest, are: State Senator Zach Wahls, son of two women and an advocate for the LGBTQ community; State Rep Josh Turek who is wheelchair bound, competed in basketball in the para Olympics, and is the favorite of Washington Democrats; and Nathan Sage, who directs a small Chamber of Commerce. There are no recent polls for this race.
Sarah Trone Garriott is also free of a primary because her opponent, the House Minority Leader, has withdrawn from the race. Sarah Trone Garriott entered the year with $850 thousand. She will need more if she is going to win.
