With less than five weeks before the Nov. 3 General Election, Democrat Lindsay James and Republican Joe Mitchell took the stage for the first of two debates as they compete for northeast Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District.
Even as both candidates voiced support for border security, E15 fuel year-round and bipartisan cooperation, they attacked each other’s backgrounds and values.
Iowa News Now recorded the debate Thursday before airing the unedited program online. A second debate between the candidates is scheduled to air live on Iowa PBS Oct. 8.
The debates share the same qualifying criteria, which excluded both Libertarian Rick Stewart and Independent Dave Bushaw.
Bushaw said the criteria were overly restrictive.
“There’s a strong case to be made that it’s a rigged process designed to shield the two major party nominees from populist challengers,” he said in statement.
Differing takes on Trump’s agenda
James, a chaplain and state representative from Dubuque, vowed to reverse Trump administration policies that she says have hurt everyday Iowans.
She pointed to tariffs, healthcare cuts included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the war in Iran as examples.
While campaigning, James said she has seen firsthand the “impossible choices that folks in our district are making because of this cost-of-living crisis, and this cost-of-living crisis is being caused by policies coming from Washington, D.C.”
Mitchell, a real estate developer and former legislator who lives in Clear Lake, stood by the Trump administration's policies.
On the conflict in Iran, he said he would support a bipartisan effort to “talk about how to reel in the powers of the executive branch and make sure that Congress has a real say in what happens when we go to war.”
However, he declined to voice support for a war powers resolution demanding an immediate end to the war. Instead, Mitchell said he would see the conflict to its conclusion.
“We're in this war right now. We're going to get out,” he said. “We have to make sure that Iran does not have a nuclear weapon.”
He also said he supports the administration’s trade policy, drawing a direct line between tariffs and the recently announced $15 billion steel plant proposed in southeast Iowa.
Areas of common ground
Both candidates said Iowa’s cancer rates are concerning, and supported incentives for farmers to implement nutrient reduction strategies. They also said they would like to see Congress pass a Farm Bill with year-round E15 included.
They also agreed data center developers should not receive tax incentives.
They shared some commonalities on immigration as well, as both candidates said the Biden administration failed to effectively secure American borders.
Mitchell vowed to prioritize immigration enforcement and restrict legal immigration.
“We're still bringing in a lot of visa holders. They're taking jobs from Iowans and Americans. I think we should always put Iowans and Americans first over anybody from outside the country,” he said.
James said she believed in a “meaningful pathway for those who want to be here legally.”
Arguments over past record
Despite their commonalities, the candidates sparred over claims about each other’s past work and values.
Mitchell characterized James as a transplant who does not understand Iowa.
“My opponent, she's from Portland, Oregon, and we don't judge her from being from Portland,” he said. “We judge her for bringing her Portland values to Iowa.”
He also criticized James for missing over half of the votes taken during the 2026 legislative session.
“If anybody here watching didn't show up to their job half time, you would be fired. And we're going to fire Lindsay James on Nov. 3,” said Mitchell.
James, who has lived in Dubuque for over a decade, countered that she chose Iowa as her home and has intentionally built a life here.
She cast her opponent as a former lobbyist interested in “Enriching himself financially by rigging the system for his own financial gain.”
James said her faith and background as a chaplain give her “A moral compass [and the] courage of conviction” to stand up for Iowans, if elected to Congress.
A tight race
Political analyst Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a project of the nonpartisan Center for Politics, lists the race as a toss-up, placing it among the most competitive this election cycle. Other analysts give Mitchell an edge, but national Democrats remain invested in James’s campaign.
In July, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added the race to its “Red to Blue” program, a list of competitive U.S. House seats it hopes to flip in November. Iowa’s 1st and 3rd districts are in the program as well.
Congresswoman Ashley Hinson has held the seat since 2021, but is leaving the position open as she runs for U.S. Senate. Early voting begins Oct. 14.
