Democrats searching for a revival in rural America are increasingly looking to Iowa, where a handful of races offer fresh optimism and potential opportunity in a state that has largely slipped out of the party’s grasp for the last decade.

Those hopes are built on several factors: Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds is retiring, and Sen. Joni Ernst’s intention to announce this week that she doesn’t plan to seek reelection means Iowa will see two open-seat races at the top of next year’s midterm ballot.

Democratic candidates have outperformed the party’s 2024 Iowa results in four special elections so far this year — including a Democratic win in a conservative state Senate district last week that broke the GOP’s supermajority in the chamber.

Democrats also believe they can capitalize on backlash

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