For nearly a decade, Food & Water Action has been on the ground in Iowa advocating for clean water and working to hold Iowa’s elected officials, long in the pocket of Big Ag, accountable. For much of this time, Republicans held the governorship, both Senate seats, all four House seats, supermajorities in both chambers of the state legislature, and nearly every other statewide elected office. 

Despite this, our work elevated water pollution to a top issue in the state, as cancer incidence rises and Iowans experience growing mistrust of what comes out of their taps. 

On Tuesday, our work paid off, with clean water candidates sweeping the map in Iowa. All three of our endorsed candidates for U.S. House won their races. Our endorsed candidate for Senate won. At the state level, an incredible 20 clean water candidates in the Iowa legislature won their races. The governor’s race and state attorney general — positions that have a significant role in addressing pollution from Big Ag — also flipped. 

These wins have the potential to bring about real improvements in people’s lives. They’ll also have ripple effects across the country. They’ve sent a clear message: people are no longer willing to sacrifice our drinking water for the sake of Big Ag’s profits.

How We Made Clean Water a Make-or-Break Issue in Iowa Politics

Iowa has the nation’s fastest-rising cancer rates, and water pollution from industrial agriculture is to blame. Roundup blankets over half the state in an average year. In recent decades, Bayer has paid out billions of dollars in settlement money after suits alleging Bayer had failed to warn people of the dangers of exposure to Roundup.

In response, Bayer shaped and lobbied for a state bill that our sister organization, Food & Water Watch, named the “Cancer Gag Act.” If passed, it would have denied sick Iowans the right to their day in court. 

Iowa has a Republican trifecta, and Bayer likely expected this bill to sail through the legislature. But we realized early on that fighting this bill was an opportunity. The Cancer Gag Act turned out to be the right wedge issue to hold Iowa’s Republican elected officials accountable. And it failed to pass — twice.

Fighting that bill elevated Iowa’s water and cancer crises in big ways. Suddenly, national, regional, and local media were paying attention to water and cancer issues in Iowa. That work kicked off an incredibly important conversation about access to clean drinking water and cancer — which forced candidates to give it the attention it deserves.

By February 2026, a Food & Water Action poll conducted by Global Strategy Group found that 72% of Iowa voters saw the state’s rising cancer rates as a very serious problem (a higher rate than for the cost of living). Moreover, 82% of voters said they’d be more likely to vote for an elected official who prioritizes clean water, including by limiting Big Ag’s pollution. 

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Food & Water Action Expanded Our Long-time Presence in Iowa

We have had two organizers in Iowa for the last eight years. They both have deep connections in Iowa, and face the same concerns about water and cancer as everyone else in the state. 

Going into 2026, we knew that to win in November, we needed to start expanding our presence early. We brought on two more field organizers in the spring to recruit new volunteers and hold regular events and trainings. By the end of the summer, our team had expanded to include a statewide field director and three local canvass directors in Des Moines, Davenport, and Iowa City.

A traditional election campaign is only focused on turning out voters by election day to vote for a candidate. But Food & Water Action treats an election as one part of a larger strategy.

We don’t only want to win races, though we know that’s an essential part of making a difference. We’re building a broad-based movement for clean water in Iowa to pass bold, lasting protections. That meant our work in the field had to go even further.

How Our Deep Work on the Ground Made a Massive Difference

Our door-to-door canvassers started by asking voters about their experiences with water pollution or the cancer crisis. This type of deep canvassing is a powerful tool to connect with our neighbors and build support in a way that reaches across divides. For voters with a compelling personal story, our canvassers asked to record a short video with them. 

In just over six weeks, our canvassers recorded dozens of stories from voters. We shared those videos on social media and directed people from the video to a volunteer survey. Our organizers called everyone who filled out the survey to hear more about their experiences and interests, and to invite them to one of our weekly trainings or get-out-the-vote events. 

This ladder of engagement served as a critical way to build our organization and our collective power. These weren’t one-off conversations at the doors — they were an invitation to get involved in a growing movement fighting for lasting change. 

By election day, our Iowa team:

• Knocked on 25,460 doors 
• Made 35,257 phone calls
• Had 5,991 conversations with voters
• Recorded 161 videos of impacted Iowans
• Distributed 1,000 yard signs 
• Organized 28 trainings and get-out-the-vote events

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Food & Water Action Will Be a Powerhouse in Iowa for the Long Run

Elections aren’t won from August to November. They’re won by year-round organizing, by building a base of people who want to take action, by investing in the long game. We’ve had staff on the ground in Iowa through much of our 20-year history, and continuously since 2018. 

When it became clear that Iowa was going to be a key battleground in the fight for control of the House, a lot of national attention, money, and organizations flooded into the state. But year-round organizing gets the goods. Our work and the work of our allies building lasting relationships across the state, training people to get involved, and building trusted local messengers is what drove the wins during this cycle.

And that’s also what will drive the wins moving forward. Year-round organizing isn’t an expendable expense. It’s the key to building a lasting movement that can win electorally and then pivot to holding those elected officials accountable to their campaign promises. Organizations like Food & Water Action are key to this success.