Vance Heads to Iowa as Senate and Governor Races Tighten

Vice President JD Vance is travelling to Iowa for the second time this year, headlining a midterm campaign rally in Council Bluffs on Friday as he works to bolster Republican majorities in Congress and builds toward his own political future.

The rally will be held in the western Iowa city on the Missouri River, a onetime Republican stronghold where both the Senate and governor's races have turned competitive this cycle.

Council Bluffs is the home base of Josh Turek, the Democratic nominee for the Senate and a sitting state legislator. His Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, will not attend Friday's event because of previously scheduled commitments, her campaign said.

Republican gubernatorial nominee Zach Lahn is set to appear. He is locked in a competitive contest against Democrat Rob Sand, the state auditor and one of the party's most prominent candidates this year.

Vance's first trip to Iowa as vice president came in May, when he campaigned with Rep. Zach Nunn, among the party's most vulnerable incumbents this cycle. Nunn and fellow Iowa Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks voted earlier this week in favour of a symbolic measure to halt the war in Iran, a sign of the political difficulty the military conflict launched by President Trump is creating for members of his own party.

During the May visit, Vance promoted the administration's tax and tariff policies at a steel manufacturing facility and warned that the year was "not a normal election" and "not a normal political environment."

The vice president has been one of the most visible surrogates on the midterm trail, travelling to states including Kansas, Wisconsin and his native Ohio to boost Republican candidates and highlight the administration's record.

Friday's rally falls in Iowa's 4th Congressional District, which Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra left open after an unsuccessful run for governor. Democrat Dave Dawson and Republican Chris McGowan are competing for the seat.