Iowa's 2nd District
U.S. House · Iowa
Lindsay James flipped the seat for Democrats, winning by 4.0 points over Joe Mitchell.
Source: Iowa Secretary of State unofficial resultsUpdated Nov 7, 2026, 1:35 PM ET
Where the race moved
Against the 2024 presidential vote
The seat's recent races
Source: Past results: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)
Money in this race
Each line compares the two sides on one scale: their campaigns, and outside groups spending for them or against their opponent.
Top funders
Outside groups and direct contributors, ranked by what they put in; the color shows which candidate it helps.
| NO GOING BACK PAC INC.For Mitchell, against James | $4.5M | |
| HMPFor James, against Mitchell | $3.5M | |
| YOUR COMMUNITY PACAgainst Mitchell | $2.1M | |
| Project 218For James | $1.7M | |
| AB PACAgainst Mitchell | $992.8K | |
| CLFAgainst James | $887.6K | |
| CFFE PACFor James | $719.2K | |
| Elect Democratic WomenAgainst Mitchell | $299.5K | |
| LCV Victory FundAgainst Mitchell | $268.5K | |
| Progressive Turnout ProjectFor James | $259.3K | |
| America PACAgainst James | $255.6K |
Show 3 more
Campaign money: FEC, through Oct 14, 2026. Outside spending: independent expenditures by super PACs, parties and other groups, primary and general, as reported to the FEC through Nov 1, 2026, updated Nov 3, 2026. It leaves out spending not reported as independent expenditures (most issue ads and much dark money), so it understates all outside money. The FEC lists only each candidate's largest spenders; totals count every spender.
Source: FEC campaign filings; FEC independent expendituresUpdated Nov 3, 2026, 1:05 AM ET
Polls against the result
The final average had James ahead by 3.8. James won by 4.0: a 0.2-point miss toward Republicans.
- Poll with James ahead
- Poll with Mitchell ahead
- Final polling average
- Result
| Pollster | Dates | Sample | James | Mitchell | Margin | Adjusted | Miss vs result | Grade | Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson College for Poll Vault | Oct 12–Oct 14 | 344 LV | 50 | 47 | D+3 | D+3.9 | −1.0 | A+ | pollvault.substack.com ↗ |
| Global Strategy Group for House Majority PACD-sponsored | Jul 14–Jul 19 | — LV | 46 | 45 | D+1 | R+0.2 | −3.0 | C | static.notus.org ↗ |
| Public Policy Polling for Lindsay James's campaignD-sponsored | Apr 13–Apr 14 | 673 RV | 36 | 33 | D+3 | D+4.4 | −1.0 | B+ | x.com ↗ |
Adjusted: after correcting for the pollster's house effect and likely-voter screens. Miss: the poll's margin minus the result; + means the poll leaned Democratic. Grade: the pollster's accuracy in past elections, A+ to D (pollster ratings).
Source: Each poll's release, via The New York Times and Wikipedia poll listsUpdated Oct 14, 2026
Pre-election forecast (final, Nov 3)
Our model's last run before Election Day, Nov 3, 2026. It no longer updates.
- Lindsay James
- 71%
- Joe Mitchell
- 29%
- Projected margin
- D+3.1
The candidates
State representative from the 71st district (2019–present)Joe Mitchell (R)
Former state representative from the 84th district (2019–2023)
Also on the ballot: Rick Stewart (Libertarian), 2.7%; Dave Bushaw (Independent), 2.2%; Write-in (Other party), 0.1%