Iowa Democrats flip district that Trump swept 3 times, defeating supermajority

Democrats flipped an Iowa state legislative seat in Sioux City on Tuesday when Catelin Drey won 55% of the votes cast in a low-turnout race, according to results from the Iowa Secretary of State. Drey’s performance represented a more than 20-point swing from Donald Trump’s majority in the district in 2024, and her victory broke a Republican supermajority in the Iowa Senate for the first time since 2022.

Many Democrats celebrated Drey’s win over Republican Chris Prosch as a major victory, noting the party also won in three other special elections in Iowa. State chair Rita Hart said in a statement that Drey won partly because Democrats in Iowa worked to “give money, knock doors and write postcards.”

Drey, a 37-year-old marketing executive, will replace former Sen. Rocky De Witt, a Republican who died in June. 

The state Senate now has 33 Republicans and 17 Democrats, according to the Iowa Legislature, leaving Republicans one vote short of a supermajority. Republicans will no longer be able to approve appointments by GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds on a party-line vote.

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee said Drey’s win boosted the party’s momentum as its candidates have “overperformed by over 10 points on average” in special elections. Some of those wins, like Drey’s, happened in districts President Donald Trump won easily in November.

“Democrats’ special election wins should send a flashing warning to the GOP: voters are rejecting the failing MAGA agenda and leaving Republican candidates in the dust,” DLCC President Heather Williams said in a statement. 

Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufmann wrote on Facebook that Democrats were “desperate for a win” and flooded the election with 30,000 volunteers and funding to help Drey win the seat. 

“If the Democrats think things are suddenly so great again for them in Iowa, they will bring back the caucuses,” he wrote.

Winning in Trump stronghold

Trump carried the Senate district by 11 points last year against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. He also carried the district in 2016 and 2020.

In Iowa, Trump’s approval rating since his election dropped two percentage points from November 2024 to August 2025, according to Civiqs.

The Democratic National Committee said on Tuesday that the party had aggressive get-out-the-vote and phone-banking campaigns to encourage Iowans to vote. Slightly fewer than one in four registered voters cast ballots.

The party noted it has won 37 out of 38 special elections since the 2024 General Election. According to election analysis site The Downballot, Democrats flipped three seats: two in Iowa and one in Pennsylvania. The Downballot focuses on local and congressional elections, providing data to the public and for use by the left-wing news site the Daily Kos.

DNC Chair Ken Martin said in a statement that the election showed Iowans aren’t happy with their Republican lawmakers and are successfully replacing them with Democratic ones. 

“That’s why all year long, Iowans have been electing Democrats ready to fight for working Iowans,” he said. “Make no mistake: when Democrats organize everywhere, we win everywhere, and today is no exception.”