First posted on Instagram
SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Senate Majority Leader John Thune said on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026, that he would not take offense if some Republicans decided against campaigning alongside him, as he traveled through northwest Iowa with Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson.
Thune said he understood that he had drawn intense criticism from the party's base, and from President Donald Trump, over the Senate's inability this year to pass voter legislation. He made the remarks while campaigning with Hinson, who is seeking to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst.
Hinson is locked in a tight contest against Democrat Josh Turek. Iowa, once reliably red, is now a tossup race, and the outcome will help determine control of the Senate in the midterm election on Nov. 3, 2026.
Their Friday itinerary in northwest Iowa included a Sioux City chamber of commerce luncheon, a tour of the Iowa Air National Guard's refueling wing, a roundtable with local business owners, and meet-and-greets at a packed high school football game that night.
Speaking in a joint interview with Hinson on her campaign bus, Thune stressed the stakes of her race. “I'm absolutely convinced that she flat has to win, and if she doesn't, we're not going to be in the majority,” he said.
Thune acknowledged a tough environment for Republicans, but said the party had to deliver a message that voters have a clear choice between two very different paths.
The background to the criticism is the SAVE America Act, which the House passed in February 2026 by 218-213. The bill would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections, but it has stalled in the Senate. In June 2026, the South Dakota Republican Party's resolutions committee advanced a censure of Thune over the stalled bill, but the full state convention defeated it on a voice vote.
Thune's own post from the Iowa trip captured the campaigning in Sioux City, where he said it was great to campaign with Hinson and so many Iowans:
With the midterm election on Nov. 3, 2026, approaching, control of the Senate remains at stake, and Thune's Iowa trip underscored how closely the leadership fight is tied to individual races such as Hinson's.
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