Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

midterm elections Apart from general elections and by-elections, midterm election refers to a type of election where the people can elect their representatives and other subnational officeholders (e.g. governor, members of local council) in the middle of the te ...

for the state's five congressional seats took place November 7, 2006. Each race was contested, pitting the winners of the Republican and Democratic primaries conducted June 6. The Democratic party won three of the five seats up for grabs. In the 2nd district, 30-year incumbent

Jim Leach James Albert Smith Leach (born October 15, 1942) is an American academic and former politician. He served as ninth Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities from 2009 to 2013 Pogrebin, Robin"Rocco Landesman Confirmed as Chairman of the N ...

, a Republican, was unseated by newcomer

Dave Loebsack David Wayne Loebsack (; born December 23, 1952) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2007 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he also is an ''emeritus'' professor of political science at Cornell College, ...

, a Democrat. The winners served from January 3, 2007 to January 3, 2009.

Overview

District 1

Regarded as one of the more hotly contested races in the nation, Republican nominee Mike Whalen of Bettendorf, the operator of the Heart of America Restaurants and Inns (HOARI) chain, took on Democratic candidate

Bruce Braley Bruce Lowell Braley (born October 30, 1957) is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative for from 2007 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he was defeated in his attempt to win an open seat in the 2014 Unit ...

, an attorney from Waterloo. The seat had been vacated when incumbent Jim Nussle announced his run for Iowa governor. In the Democratic primary, Braley defeated Rick Dickinson, Bill Gluba and Denny Heath. Whalen got the GOP nod over

Bill Dix William C. Dix is a Republican politician and farmer from Shell Rock, Iowa. He was formerly the Majority Leader of the Iowa Senate representing Senate District 25, which covers Butler, Grundy, Hardin, and Story Counties. He served as the ...

and Brian Kennedy. Following an election that was peppered with negative attack ads from both sides, Braley defeated Whalen by a solid margin. Braley's victory meant that, for the first time since 1976, a Democrat will be serving the district.

District 2

When the Iowa Secretary of State's office posted its list of primary candidates online in March, there was no Democratic candidate

However,

of Mount Vernon, Iowa, Mount Vernon, a political science professor at

Cornell College Cornell College is a private college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by George Bryant Bowman. Four years later, in 1857, the name was changed to Cornell College, in honor of iron tyc ...

, received write-in votes in the June 6 primary to become the Democratic nomine

Incumbent Jim Leach was the sole GOP candidate in the primary. The campaign eventually heated up, as Loebsack was hoping to ride what he viewed as voter discontent with the Bush administration. Leach supporters continued to point to his strong integrity and status as one of the most liberal Republicans in the House. On election night, Loebsack stunned many political observers by defeating Leach by a thin margin. Leach's defeat made him the most senior House member to lose re-election in 2006 and the most senior member to lose re-election since 42-year incumbent Jack Brooks (American politician), Jack Brooks lost to

Steve Stockman Stephen Ernest Stockman (born November 14, 1956) is an American politician who is a member of the Republican Party and a convicted felon. He served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 9th congressional district from 1995 to 1997 and for Texa ...

in the 1994 Republican Revolution.

District 3

Five-term incumbent

Leonard Boswell Leonard Leroy Boswell (January 10, 1934 – August 17, 2018) was an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1997 to 2013, a district based in Des Moines. A member of the Democratic Party, he was defeated for reelectio ...

, a Democrat from

Des Moines Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines ...

, took on Republican challenger

Jeff Lamberti Jeffrey M. Lamberti (born October 21, 1962, in Ankeny, Iowa) is a former Republican Senate leader and two term state senator representing the 35th District of the Iowa Senate, and served two terms as State Representative. In the 2006 mid-term ele ...

of Ankeny, a two-term state senator from the 35th District and the GOP's Senate leader. Both candidates were uncontested in the June 6 primary. Like in the first congressional district, the third district race was characterized by negative attack advertising and attention from national committees seeking to elect their candidate of choice. Boswell ultimately took advantage of the strong Democratic wave sweeping across the country and defeated Lamberti to win a sixth term.

District 4

Seven-term Republican incumbent Tom Latham of

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

faced Democratic nominee Selden Spencer, a neurologist from Huxley. Both candidates were unopposed in the June 6 primary. Although quiet by comparison to other races in Iowa, the

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was a major point of contention between the candidates. Though some political analysts expected the race to be a tough one, Latham defeated Spencer by a solid margin to win a seventh term.

District 5

Republican Steve King of Kiron, a two-term incumbent, faced Democratic nominee Joyce Schulte of Creston. Schulte had defeated Robert Chambers in the June 6 primary, while King was unopposed. In the November 7 election, King defeated Schulte in a small landslide to win another term.