Iowa Democrat Jackie Norris ends US Senate campaign, citing Des Moines superintendent’s ICE arrest

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Democrat Jackie Norris ended her campaign for Iowa’s open U.S. Senate seat Thursday, saying she would focus on her job leading the Des Moines public school board following the superintendent’s arrest by immigration authorities.

Norris said the Sept. 26 detention of Superintendent Ian Roberts by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents demanded her focus as chair of the board overseeing Iowa’s largest school district and put “our community, and me personally in the crosshairs of vicious and coordinated attacks.”

“Those realities took time and oxygen away from the work I set out to do: stand up for our kids and families — and the backbone of our communities, their educators and caregivers,” Norris wrote in a message posted on social media.

She added she would continue to lead the board as it transitions to an interim superintendent, seeks voter approval in November for a $265 million bond for school and program improvements, and participates in “ongoing investigations to get the answers our community deserves” about Roberts’ employment.

Norris’ departure leaves a Democratic primary field featuring several male candidates seeking the seat being vacated by Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican who is stepping down after serving two terms. They include state Sen. Zach Wahls, state Rep. Josh Turek and military veteran Nathan Sage.

On the Republican side, U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson is running for the nomination against former state Sen. Jim Carlin, among others. Republicans are favored to retain the seat in a state where Republican President Donald Trump won 56% of the vote and defeated Democrat Kamala Harris by 13.2 percentage points in the November 2024 election.

Ernst’s surprise announcement last month that she would not seek reelection in 2026 created an unexpected opening. But the move hasn’t made national Democratic campaign leadership any more aggressive, nor made Republicans anxious, about the seat.

Democrats must gain a net of four seats to seize the Senate majority, a tall task for the party, considering most of the states holding Senate elections next year were carried by Trump in 2024. Democrats have been more focused on recruiting candidates in pickup opportunities such as Maine, where Trump lost last year, and North Carolina, where Trump won narrowly.

Roberts’ arrest by ICE came at a terrible time for Norris, a former chief of staff for former first lady Michelle Obama who launched her campaign in August emphasizing her service on the Des Moines school board and past as a classroom teacher.

She was thrust into the spotlight as the public tried to understand how the board could have hired Roberts in 2023, when authorities said the native of Guyana was living and working illegally in the U.S. Days after the arrest, Norris faced criticism for posting a video ahead of a quarterly Sept. 30 fundraising deadline seeking donations.

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AP political reporter Thomas Beaumont contributed from Des Moines, Iowa.