The two Democratic candidates running for an open Iowa seat in the Senate sparred over the future of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and his connections to “dark money” organizations during Tuesday night’s debate.
Schumer came up during the debate when Iowa state Sen. Zach Wahls asked his primary opponent, Iowa state Rep. Josh Turek, if he would vote for Schumer as Senate Democratic leader should Turek be elected in November. Turek declined to say whether he would back Schumer, stressing he’s “not a D.C. insider” and doesn’t “know these folks.”
Wahls took the opportunity to differentiate himself, reiterating he would not vote for Schumer as leader.
“We are not going to beat Ashley Hinson with an answer like that,” Wahls said.
Whichever candidate wins the primary next month will proceed to the general election, where the Democratic nominee will challenge Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) for the seat vacated by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA).
Wahls previously criticized Turek over his fundraising ties to VoteVets, a progressive super PAC that has released television ads supporting Turek. The group has received money from fundraising organizations connected to Senate Democrats.
Wahls brought up the issue as he tied Turek’s campaign to support for Schumer, citing VoteVets’ advertising spending.
“Sen. Schumer is trying to come into Iowa, trying to buy an election to the tune of $6.7 million and climbing,” Wahls said. “And the reason … why this is so frustrating to me is that when we talk about how we can win in this state, we are going to have to be honest with voters about the failures of leaders in both parties.”
ZACH WAHLS’S TRAVEL AND HOTEL SPENDING DRAWS SCRUTINY AMID POPULIST MESSAGE
Turek fired back, pointing to his opponent’s past employment at a “dark money PAC” and acceptance of campaign contributions later tied to executives at FTX, a now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange founded by Sam Bankman-Fried. Wahls, the state Senate minority leader at the time, was removed from the position in 2023 over a separate issue.
In response, Wahls said Turek’s claims were “categorically false” and claimed he was a victim of fraud.