The2010 House elections inIowa occurred on November 2, 2010, and elected the members of theState of Iowa's delegation to theUnited States House of Representatives. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the112th Congress from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. Iowa has five seats in the House, apportioned according to the2000 United States census.
Despite losing the popular vote, Democrats won a majority of congressional districts in Iowa, which they have only done once since- in2018. As a result, Iowa became one of four states in which the party that won the state's popular vote did not win a majority of seats in 2010, the other states beingNew Jersey,Illinois, andNorth Carolina.
In this liberal-leaning district based in northeastern Iowa, incumbent Democratic CongressmanBruce Braley ran for a third term against Republican attorney Ben Lange, Libertarian Rob Petsche, and independent candidate Jason Faulkner. Though Braley was overwhelmingly re-elected to his second term two years prior, the anti-Democratic mood in the country contributed to the Congressman experiencing a tough fight for re-election. The race attracted the attention of both national party organizations, and thousands of dollars were reserved for airtime by theDCCC and theNRCC. Though Braley emerged victorious on election day, it was by a slim 4,000 vote and two percent margin, which was the thinnest margin of victory out of the entire Iowa congressional delegation.
In a rematch from 2008, incumbent Democratic CongressmanDave Loebsack faced Republican challengerMariannette Miller-Meeks when he ran for a third term in this southeastern Iowa-based district, the most liberal of the congressional districts in the state. Polling indicated that the race would be close, and both parties’ congressional campaign committees spent on television advertisements, but ultimately, Congressman Loebsack defeated Miller-Meeks by a 10,000 vote, five percent margin.
Incumbent Democratic CongressmanLeonard Boswell ran for an eighth term in this marginally liberal district that includes parts of theWaterloo – Cedar Falls metropolitan area,metro Des Moines, andCedar Rapids. Congressman Boswell, who has faced difficult elections every year, faced RepublicanState SenatorBrad Zaun in the general election. Though early polling indicated that Boswell was in trouble, he managed to turn the tide and edged out Zaun by a four percent margin.
Though Republican CongressmanTom Latham represents a centrist district, he has never had much trouble winning re-election since he was first elected in1994. This year, Congressman Latham faced the Democratic nominee, Bill Maske, a school superintendent, and independent candidate Dan Lensing. Latham was never in peril of losing his seat and managed to crush Maske and Lensing to win a ninth term in Congress.
CongressmanSteve King, a Republican, represents the most conservative district in Iowa, which is rooted in the staunchly conservative areas of western Iowa. King is an outspoken conservative seeking his fifth term in Congress, and he faced Democrat Matthew Campbell in the general election. Though Democrats had high hopes for Campbell's campaign, he was ultimately not able to beat back the conservative tendencies of the district and lost to King in a landslide.
^abcdeRothenberg Political Report (November 1, 2010)."House Ratings". Rothenbergpoliticalreport.com. Archived fromthe original on November 1, 2010. RetrievedNovember 1, 2010.
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District results
County results
