Iowa Democrat J.D. Scholten has announced that he is entering the 2026 race for Republican Senator Joni Ernst 's seat. The decision was "prompted in part" by controversial remarks Ernst made about possible Medicaid cuts, ABC News reported. Newsweek contacted Scholten and Ernst for comment on Tuesday via email outside regular office hours.

The senator’s sarcasm-tinged response to controversy complicates Republican efforts to downplay their bill’s effects on Americans’ Medicaid coverage.

Three days after Sen. Joni Ernst responded to a constituent’s concerns about potential Medicaid cuts by saying, “We’re all going to die,” the Iowa Republican drew a high-profile Democratic opponent. State Rep.