Catelin Drey wins Iowa Senate seat, ends GOP two-thirds supermajority

In a decisive result Tuesday, Democrat Catelin Drey defeated Republican Christopher Prosch in the open 1st Iowa Senate District race, flipping the seat and breaking the GOP’s two-thirds supermajority in the state Senate for the first time in three years. Unofficial returns showed Drey with about 55 percent of the vote to Prosch’s roughly 44 percent, filling the term of the late Republican state Sen. Rocky De Witt and giving Democrats 17 seats to 33 for Republicans, a margin that removes the two-thirds threshold in the chamber.

The election was held in Woodbury County, a district that includes the Sioux City area and that President Donald Trump carried by double digits in the 2024 election. The result means Democrats will hold 17 seats in the 50-member chamber, while Republicans retain control of the Senate’s majority. The shift follows additional special-election results this year in which Democrats have gained previously Republican-held seats, signaling a broader momentum in state-level races.

Officials and party organizers emphasized the broader implications of the seat flip. With the loss of the two-thirds supermajority, Republican nominees proposed by the governor will...