Iowa City Democrat Christina Bohannan announced Thursday that she will challenge U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, in 2026 for the third time setting up a highly competitive race in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District.
The 53-year-old University of Iowa law professor lost by 799 votes in last November’s election, making it the closest congressional race in the country. However, with Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress and the White House, the 1st Congressional District race is expected to be one of the most closely contested races in the U.S.
“Mariannette Miller-Meeks has had three terms in Congress – three chances to do right by the people of Iowa,” Bohannan said in a news release Tuesday. “Instead, she has taken over $4 million from corporate special interests and done nothing but vote their way. And she has put partisan politics over Iowans again and again.”
The district is one of the most competitive in the country with a unique voter demographic that makes for a toss-up race. Both the Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball , national election forecasters, rated the race as a toss-up for the 2026 midterm elections.
The national campaign arm of the U.S. House Democrats announced in April that the 1st Congressional District was one of 35 in play this election, leaving a path for Democrats to regain the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives running right through Iowa.
Bohannan pegged her last campaign on fighting for reproductive rights, a talking point that failed to motivate voters nationwide last election, but was especially salient for Iowa voters who faced the newly enacted six-week abortion ban in 2024.
However, this race is likely to focus on the impacts of the tax and spending cuts championed by President Donald Trump. Miller-Meeks played a key role in the approval of billions in cuts to Medicaid spending and was one of 215 U.S. House Republicans to vote for the bill.
“From cutting Medicaid, to siding with DOGE’s devastating cuts to Social Security, to enabling unelected, unaccountable billionaires like Elon Musk – Miller-Meeks has forgotten about us,” Bohannan said in a news release Tuesday. “It’s time someone put Iowa first.”
Bohannan isn’t the only Democrat vying for the seat. Currently former State Rep. Bob Krause, D-Burlington, and University of Iowa Healthcare employee Travis Terrel are also running for the seat.
Miller-Meeks also sees a primary challenge in David Pausch, who ran against Miller-Meeks in 2024 and lost, but his wins showed deep divisions among Republicans.
Iowa GOP Chair Jeff Kaufmann said that although the race will be competitive, he is confident Miller-Meeks will prevail and Iowans will reject Bohannan for a third time.
“Whoever survives this messy Democrat primary will not stand a chance against Iowa champion Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who is laser-focused on delivering real results Iowans can count on,” Kaufmann said in a statement Tuesday. “For Bohannan, the third time will not be the charm, it will be the final rejection.”