Ahead of the November 2026 general election, there has been a lot of activity over the past few weeks on another type of election in the states of Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota.
This Frequency show is on the series of primary elections.
The primary in Nebraska took place on May 12, while in South Dakota and Iowa that is taking place on June 2, and early voting has been underway in those states.
The elections cover state races such as governor and legislative seats, plus federal offices including the U.S. Senate.
Here to discuss the notable races and explaining the process is a group of three Siouxland academics, with professors are Julia Hellwege of the University of South Dakota, Bradley Best of Buena Vista University, and Patrick McKinlay of Morningside University.
This group joins me a few times per year to discuss election previews, post mortems and national news.
To set the stage, they define what a primary election is, and what they accomplish in terms of narrowing a field of candidates for the November general election.
The professors also review history in terms of how many voters turn out for primaries, plus what type of person typically participates in a primary election.
There is a notable factor in two races in Iowa, where, in a rare circumstance, both Governor Kim Reynolds and U.S. Senator Joni Ernst are not running. Both are Republicans who in 2025 surprised some people by not running for re-election.
It appears an open seat means a lot more candidates have come forward. There are five Republicans running for Iowa governor, including Congressman Randy Feenstra, who is seeking to shift offices.
For the U.S. Senate seat in Iowa, there are two Democrats and two Republicans.
Jim Carlin, of Sioux City, is one of two Republicans running for the U.S. Senate seat, along with Ashley Hinson. Carlin is a former state legislator.
The Democrats are Josh Turek, of Council Bluffs, who campaigned in Sioux City on Thursday. and Zach Wahls, of Coralville.
Then turning to the South Dakota governor race, incumbent Larry Rhoden is running, but apparently many Republicans are not cowed by that.
Congressman Dusty Johnson is running for governor and is the fundraising leader, with the other candidates being State Representative Jon Hansen, and Businessman Toby Doeden.
You can also hear the professors assess the three Iowa 4th congressional Democratic candidates — Dave Dawson of Lawton, Stephanie Steiner of Sutherland, and Ashley WolfTornabane of Storm Lake — plus other races,.
We also have a discussion on some state legislative primary contests,
*Click on the audio link above to hear the entire show.
What's The Frequency, Episode 106.
