Konfrst not ruling out 2026 run for governor
Dem says Iowans ‘fed up with Republican rule’
House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst says she’s “not taking anything off the table” when it comes to running for Iowa governor in 2026.
Konfrst, a Democrat from Windsor Heights, was elected to the Iowa House in 2018 and was chosen by her Democratic colleagues to serve as minority leader in 2021. She is an associate professor at Drake University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
She was asked Friday on an episode of “Iowa Press” on Iowa PBS if she might run for governor in 2026.
“When I look at the table and at the landscape of the state, I see that Iowans are pretty fed up with Republican rule,” Konfrst said. “They have seen that things have gone too far, too extreme. They’re pretty fed up with (Gov.) Kim Reynolds. Iowans are looking for a new governor. I know that I am focused on flipping seats in the Iowa House in 2024. But, look, I’m not taking anything off the table.”
Reynolds, a Republican, became governor in 2017 and won election in 2018 and 2022. She has not said whether she will seek reelection in 2026. No candidates, Democrats or Republicans, have formally announced a campaign for the seat.
As governor, Reynolds has worked with Republican majorities in the Iowa Legislature to pass sweeping changes, including cutting taxes, shrinking state government and a range of new education laws like providing taxpayer-funded education savings accounts that families can use to pay for private school.
“I go around this state, people are really mad at Kim Reynolds and really mad at the governor and Republicans and yeah, people ask me to run for governor a lot,” Konfrst said. “But right now, I’m focused on 2024.”
Konfrst’s task as House minority leader is to win more races for House Democrats, who currently hold 36 of the chamber’s 100 seats.
She said the party has recruited “some amazing candidates” who are running on issues like abortion rights and opposition to Reynolds’ overhaul of Iowa’s Area Education Agencies.
But she admitted Democrats will face difficulty in winning a majority in the House this fall.
“We’re always shooting for 51, but as you say it is a heavy lift,” she said. “I think that we could see a world in which we’re at 40 to 43 seats after this next election. That would be a great night for us.”
House Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, was also asked if he would run for governor on an April 26 episode of “Iowa Press.” He said he is planning to run for reelection to his current position as a state representative and hopes to continue leading House Republicans.
“I’m going to run for reelection, hoping to lead this majority to even bigger things,” he said.