Iowa’s Joe Mitchell announces U.S. House campaign to ‘have President Trump’s back’

DES MOINES — Saying Iowa needs members of Congress “who will have President (Donald) Trump’s back,” Republican former state lawmaker Joe Mitchell on Monday announced his campaign for the U.S. House.

Mitchell, a 28-year-old property developer from Clear Lake, becomes the second Republican to officially declare a campaign in Eastern Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District, which became an open-seat election last week when Republican incumbent Ashley Hinson announced her intention to run for the U.S. Senate.

Mitchell became one of the youngest people ever elected to the Iowa Legislature in 2018, when he was 21 years old. In addition to serving two terms in the Iowa House, from 2019 to 20022, Mitchell served in the Trump administration as a regional director for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and a chief of staff in the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

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In a press release announcing his campaign, Mitchell is described as “a trusted voice in the MAGA movement” who will “fight for the hardworking Iowans who have made their support for President Trump loud and clear.”

“I’m running for Congress because too many Iowans have been left behind by a broken political system that works for insiders and lobbyists, not for us. For too long, politicians in Washington have wasted our tax dollars and cut backroom deals while working families pay the price,” Mitchell said in the press release. “I’ll work with President Trump to end reckless spending, secure our borders, protect our farmers, and build an economy where hard work pays again. It’s time to take power back from the insiders and return it to the people of Iowa — where it belongs.”

Mitchell also runs the national nonprofit Run GenZ, which recruits young conservatives to run for local and state office. According to his campaign press release, RunZ has helped hundreds of young people run and win local and state elections in all 50 states.

Mitchell also has served as President and Chairman of the Iowa Real Estate Developers Association, and, according to his campaign, recently became the youngest Resident Fellow in Harvard University’s history.

State legislator Charlie McClintock of Alburnett also has announced his candidacy for Iowa-2, and state legislator Shannon Lundgren of Peosta and former Congressman Rod Blum of Dubuque have said they are weighing a run.

Several Democratic candidates are in the field: state legislator Lindsay James of Dubuque, Cedar Rapids nonprofit leader Clint Twedt-Ball, veteran and former community college nursing dean Kathy Dolter of Cedar Rapids, and former state park manager Don Primus of Steamboat Rock.

Iowa’s primary election is June 2, 2026, and the general election is Nov. 3, 2026.

Comments: (515) 355-1300, erin.murphy@thegazette.com

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