Democrat Drey Wins Iowa Senate Seat, Breaks GOP Supermajority

Democrat Catelin Drey won a special election in Iowa's 1st Senate District, flipping a seat that Republicans had held for over a decade and breaking the GOP's supermajority in the state Senate. Drey defeated Republican Christopher Prosch by approximately 10 percentage points in a district that President Donald Trump won by 11 points in 2024, marking a significant Democratic gain in a heavily GOP-leaning area. This victory means Republicans no longer hold the two-thirds majority needed to confirm Governor Kim Reynolds' nominees on a party-line vote, requiring bipartisan support for appointments. The seat was vacated due to the death of Republican Sen. Rocky De Witt, who had won the district by double digits in 2022. Drey's win follows other recent Democratic successes in Iowa special elections and is seen as a sign of potential gains in the 2026 midterms. Democrats credit voter frustration with the Trump administration and local issues like cost and education funding for driving turnout and shifting the political landscape in the state.