DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) 鈥� Businessman Zach Lahn’s win in over President Donald Trump鈥檚 pick, Rep. Randy Feenstra, delivered a rare electoral setback for Trump in a primary season that had handed him .
The narrow upset Tuesday revealed cracks in Trump’s coalition in the red state that helped the president , encouraging Democrats who are hopeful they can flip control of the governor’s office this year. It also marked a potential breakthrough moment for , which has clashed with the Trump administration over its and backed Lahn’s message in favor of regenerative farming and against large agricultural corporations.
鈥淚 will take on the big ag cartels. I will break up their monopolies, and I will get Iowa farmers a fair deal,” Lahn said in his victory speech late Tuesday.
Members of the MAHA movement, a diverse coalition of supporters of with priorities ranging from ending vaccine mandates to promoting healthy soil and organic food, cheered the win as a sign their political message was resonating with voters.
鈥淭his election is a signal that pro-pesticide does not mean pro-farmer,鈥� said Tony Lyons, president of Kennedy-aligned MAHA PAC, which endorsed Lahn. 鈥淶ach Lahn made transitioning away from toxic chemicals the cornerstone of his campaign and won this election decisively with strong farmer support.鈥�
Lahn carved out a MAHA fandom
Lahn, a farmer and former conservative political director, was relatively unknown in Iowa before launching his campaign in November. He championed traditional policies that appealed to Iowa’s conservative voters, such as further restricting abortion and keeping liberal ideology out of schools.
But Lahn, who owns an investment company and lives on an eastern Iowa farm that had been in his family for a century, also carved out a niche with the MAHA movement, vocally rebuking agricultural monopolies and acknowledging health questions involving farming products.
MAHA activists loudly backed Lahn as they grew increasingly impatient with the Trump administration and its for actions they view as antithetical to making America healthier.
Earlier this year, they revolted after Trump issued an executive order aimed at boosting production of . They also protested at the Supreme Court in April against Trump-backed effort to protect itself from lawsuits.
Lahn has opposed liability shields for pesticide companies.
鈥淚owa has the fastest growing cancer rate in the world,鈥� Lahn said in Tuesday’s speech. 鈥淲e all know something is terribly wrong. But too many politicians from Washington, D.C., to Des Moines have had their heads stuck in the sand while big ag and big pharma printed money. This will not go on when I鈥檓 governor.鈥�
Those positions helped Lahn gain endorsements from MAHA PAC and the late Charlie Kirk’s conservative political organization, Turning Point Action. Figures from both celebrated Lahn’s victory as their own.
鈥淢AHA has done its job proving it鈥檚 politically radioactive to stand with chemicals over children,鈥� Turning Point USA podcaster Alex Clark said on social media. 鈥淚owa knows pesticides are causing cancer which is exploding in their state. Tonight they opted for change.鈥�
Kelly Ryerson, a Florida-based activist whose social media account Glyphosate Girl focuses on nontoxic food systems, said she wants candidates in other states to take note. Ryerson had previously criticized Trump’s endorsement of Feenstra, describing the congressman as 鈥渟traight from the poison swamp.鈥�
鈥淒ecreasing pesticides and improving food quality are common ground issues that drive votes,鈥� she said.
A setback for Trump after repeated victories
Trump had stayed quiet on Iowa’s gubernatorial race until last week, when he as 鈥淢AGA all the way鈥� and said he would 鈥渇ight tirelessly鈥� for Iowa on the economy and border security.
The power of the president’s endorsement was proven earlier in the primary season, taking down two senators 鈥� of Texas and of Louisiana 鈥� and Rep. of Kentucky.
The Republican National Committee denied the Iowa results signaled a weakening of Trump鈥檚 influence with voters.
鈥淧resident Trump鈥檚 endorsement is the most valuable force in politics and worth its weight in gold,鈥� spokesman Zach Kraft said in a statement. 鈥淭he record speaks for itself.鈥�
Some political observers viewed Massie’s loss as a stumble for the MAHA movement. The Republican congressman had helped lead a bipartisan effort to remove liability protections for chemical companies from the recent farm bill, in line with activists’ concerns.
Trump campaign veteran and Iowa political operative Alex Latcham said Tuesday’s result does not detract from the grassroots goodwill Trump has built in Iowa. After all, Latcham said, it was Trump who recognized and embraced the MAHA issues that middle America cares about, which led him to appoint Kennedy as health secretary.
Latcham emphasized that all five Iowa primary candidates ran pro-Trump campaigns. Ultimately, Latcham said, Iowans want to see candidates up close to make their own assessments. Lahn and others criticized Feenstra for avoiding debates and spending limited time on the campaign trail.
鈥淎t the end of the day the president still remains the undisputed leader of the party,鈥� said Latcham, who currently serves as executive director of Senate Republicans’ main super PAC. 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 necessarily read into this as being a diminishment of the president鈥檚 political standing.鈥�
But Feenstra’s loss, marking a win for MAHA and a miss for the president, creates an opening Democrats may try to seize.
State Auditor , the lone Democrat currently holding statewide office, is the party鈥檚 nominee for governor. Unopposed in the primary, Sand has been able to hone his moderate message, remind voters of his rural upbringing and amass an $18 million campaign fund.
Lahn, looking ahead to November in his victory speech, pivoted from talking about cancer rates and family farms to the cultural issues that have riled up the GOP base in recent cycles, saying Sand would 鈥渧eto any culture war bill.鈥�
鈥淩ob Sand is not a moderate,” Lahn said. “He鈥檚 a liberal career politician pretending to be someone he鈥檚 not.鈥�
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Swenson reported from New York.
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