Iowa Democrat Josh Turek Took $20,100 Per Diem While Missing 261 Votes in 2026

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 8

Records show Turek missed 261 Iowa House votes from Jan. 12 to May 3—nearly 60% of his 2026 votes—while collecting the full $20,100 in tax-free per diem allowed over 100 session days.
Campaign activity overlapped with some absences: he missed 12 votes while raising $43,000 in Southern California and 16 more while collecting $36,500 in Washington, including on rural health and education bills.
The missed votes also included stretches around high-profile legislation, and at one point Turek was absent for 30 consecutive votes as he campaigned for the open Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst.
Turek's campaign said other candidates also miss votes to fundraise and called him bipartisan and effective, while Republican rival Ashley Hinson's team cited her 98.8% lifetime U.S. House voting record and labeled him an absentee legislator.
The scrutiny lands after Turek won Iowa's Democratic Senate primary; he heads into the Nov. 3 general election against Hinson after raising $3.4 million through May, a modest sum for a competitive open-seat race.